The Scaled Knight
by Serakrom
Summary: Natsu is about to undergo his year-long training to pursue strength and achieve his utmost potential. But what will happen when he suddenly hears voices in his sleep? What is it trying to say? Find out as he, Happy and a certain princess journey through Ishgar to get stronger and also to look out for their new enemies and their goals. First fanfic. Spoilers ahead.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is my first fanfic, so please tell me what you think. English is not my first language so grammar and punctuation might be a little rough. This will only be a short story ranging from 5-10 chapters. Without further delay, ENJOY!**

 **DISCLAIMER: HIRO MASHIMA OWNS FAIRY TAIL, NOT ME.**

It had already been two weeks since Fairy Tail's battle with Tartaros, Natsu and Happy decided to leave the guild to train and get stronger. Their reason was pure and simple, in order to protect the ones they care about and to never again deal with the pain of losing someone. Such ideals can only be said about Natsu and the rest of Fairy Tail, the mages in there are not merely co-workers but they see and treat each other as family. Yes, a one big, diverse, happy family.

Two weeks ago, the bonds of that family was tested against the apocalyptic ambitions of Tartaros, their inhumane foes desire to erase all magic and revive their master, a vile demon named E.N.D. Fairy Tail ultimately won in the end, their unwavering faith in each other's strength and the ability to pull through any kind of dire situation were strong enough to eliminate the darkness that Tartaros was spreading. But it was not without casualties of war, some of them lost someone they love and wanted to see more of. None more so than the dragon slayers Natsu, Gajeel and Wendy, they lost their foster parents that took care of them before their time in Fairy Tail. Through the pits of sorrow and grief, they were brought back by their friends reminding them that they're never alone. And that's what brought Natsu to Crocus, to start his year-long training.

-LINE BREAK-

 **AT CROCUS:**

Natsu Dragneel who appears to be in his late teens is seen together with a blue flying cat, Happy. He is wearing a black waistcoat, knee-length white trousers and open-toed sandals. He is also carrying a backpack and along with it is a white, scaly scarf is wrapped around his neck. His blue partner isn't wearing anything except a green handkerchief tied around his neck.

"It's been a while since we last came here, right Natsu?" Happy started.

"Yeah, but I'm glad not much has changed." answered Natsu. "Happy, let's go find somewhere to eat."

"Aye sir!" Happy exclaimed.

The duo was looking around through Crocus hoping to find a nice and quiet restaurant that serves tons of their favorite food, which was not surprisingly, meat and fish. As they kept browsing around the capital, they suddenly heard a troubled scream.

"Let's go, Happy!" Natsu said to his partner.

"Aye!"

Natsu and Happy immediately halted their search for a restaurant to go to the place where that scream came from. With his enhanced senses, he was quick to locate the street where it was. Even from far away, he could already sense there was trouble. They could see the area was surrounded by five to six people, there were also knights from the palace with readying stance preparing to unsheathe their swords. Natsu and Happy quietly approached the small crowd to find out about the situation.

"Hey, what's going on in there?" Natsu asked a random citizen.

"Those people are robbers, that's a jewelry store right there being robbed of every last piece of jewelry and every last jewel notes they have by those scoundrels." the man muttered quietly but with disgust laced in his voice. He stepped aside a bit to let Natsu have a look at what's happening.

In front of the three knights, he could see five men wearing cloaks. All of them masked with their faces with bandages. Four of those men were also wielding swords, threatening anyone who dares take a step closer. A man who seems to be the ringleader is taking a young woman hostage, he is keeping her in place by having a firm grasp at the back of her neck while pointing a gun on her head, he also had a lecherous look on his face which promised unspeakable things. The knights were trying to negotiate with the leader while also being wary of what action they might take. Aside from them, there was also a middle-aged man lying on the ground bloodied and bruised. He can only assume the man was beaten up to the edge of his life.

"How many are they?" asked Natsu with so much anger in his voice. He was already preparing to take them all out.

"There are ten others inside the store also armed. There are also a few customers held captive inside as well. That man on the ground is the shop owner and that woman's father. He tried to fight back but was beaten up badly." the man answered.

"Happy, carry me up." Natsu said to his partner in which the exceed quickly nodded.

The man was about to tell Natsu more info only to turn around that he wasn't there anymore, he envied Natsu because he was able to sneak out. He only hoped that he calls for help.

-LINE BREAK-

 **WITH NATSU AND HAPPY:**

Natsu and Happy went to the back of the store and then Happy started carrying Natsu up, away from the eyes of the crowd and the robbers.

"Okay, this is high enough. Happy, you know what to do." Natsu grinned.

"Aye, careful Natsu." Happy said as he dropped Natsu 100 feet above the ground.

-LINE BREAK-

"Please, let me tend to my father. He needs medic-" the woman being held captive tried to say but was cut off when the robber shut her up with piece of cloth rolled into a ball.

"Shut up you wench or I'll kill you both!" the leader of the robbers threatened. "After we're done here, maybe I could play with you for a while then sell you to some whorehouse for more easy cash. They pay pretty well for a lass like you."

The young woman could only cry at her current predicament, her father was almost beaten to death and if she couldn't escape her current situation, she might lead a harsh and painful life. The knights were just as helpless as they could not call for backup with the threats and demands of the robbers. They were heavily undermanned and undergunned at the moment. They were also threatening the few civilians at the surrounding area, saying that one suspicious move will result in blood being spilled.

The leader could almost taste his success and victory. There was nobody stopping them now. With this less people to bear witness at the scene, their guaranteed to run off with the prize. And the security of the streets being this low, it was all thanks to the current visitor at the palace. They had to tighten the defense around the palace, leaving the streets of the capital less protected. The leader chose the perfect time to rob a jewelry store where security has been lowered. The leader's evil smirk grew and grew just thinking of the things he could do with his soon-to-be riches. He was soon brought out of his thoughts when he heard something crash against the roof, which caused him to turn around and check.

A few seconds later, there were  
torrents of fire which exploded from the windows, which made the leader gasp in surprise and worry for his treasure. As the explosion occurred several men were also thrown out of the windows, they were all wearing bandages on their faces which were already torn. They were burned, bloodied, bruised and missing some teeth. All of them were unconscious but still alive. All of the people present could only look in shock at the sudden twist of events. Emerging from the dust, was a young man with pink hair wearing a black waistcoat, sporting a grin of satisfaction while dragging two unconscious bodies. The remaining customers inside the shop immediately got out and scrammed out of sight.

"All right! Which one of you fuckers is next!?" Natsu challenged the remaining robbers, igniting his right hand and readied his stance.

The robbers except their leader could not help but step back in fear and awe of the power that radiated from the lad. Their movements and expression showed faltering and hesitation whether to attack or to run like hell.

"What are you buffoons standing around, getting impressed about!? Tear him to pieces!" the leader shouted with a commanding tone.

The four men hardened their resolve and charge at Natsu preparing to slash or stab him with their swords, which seem to be normal and not magically enhanced.

"Bring it on, losers!" Natsu said as he easily dodged a sword slash from his right side while putting his right leg in front of the man's right foot which caused him to stumble and fall, face first. He also evaded a downward sword slash from the second bandit which he quickly disabled by twisting the man's wrist, forcing him to to let go of his sword and deliver a flaming uppercut at the man's jaw sending the man twenty feet above ground before crashing into the dirt with a broken jaw. And finally when the two remaining men were about to stab him, he quickly caught their swords with both his hands and effortlessly melted them.

 **"FIRE DRAGON'S IRON FIST!"** he quickly delivered two knock out blows to both men, sending them crashing into a wall.

"That was not even decent warm-up." Natsu boasted while cracking his fists. He suddenly felt something off with the air only to realize it when he dodged another downward slash. It came from the man who fell face first. He was about to sway his sword sideway to the left but, **"FIRE DRAGON'S FLAMING ELBOW!"** the blow connected to the man's chest, draining all the air from his lungs and he passed out.

The leader grew more and more afraid of the young man or monster before him. He then, tightened his grip on the woman, ready to pull the trigger. He couldn't believe how the situation has changed, a few seconds ago, he was holding their very fates in his hands but with the sudden appearance of the pink-haired monster, all of his control was gone almost in an instant.

"Step any closer, and her brains will be on ground!" the man warned Natsu. This caused the woman to visibly shake about what's to come.

Natsu just stared at the scum before him. The look he gave him promised burned clothing, broken bones and a whole lot of pain. The leader also gave him a look of murderous intent only for him to receive a smug smirk from Natsu. This caused him to lower his guard for a second so he can read the expression on Natsu's face. But then, a blue blur of speed descended and forcefully wacked the gun away from his hands, immediately freeing the girl from his grip carrying her away from the area.

"Finish him, Natsu!" Happy shouted to his partner as he flew up and carry the dumbfounded woman. "You sure are heavy, but not as heavy as Lucy though." the exceed continued.

"I'm on it, thanks little buddy!" Natsu said in appreciation and charged at his opponent. **"FIRE DRAGON'S TALONS!"**

The leader finally recovered from his shock and crossed his arms to block the flaming kick. The force of the kick was very strong, sending him a few meters backwards but he managed to regain his footing. It's clear to him that the man in front of him is way above his level. He could only think of one thing, escape.

"Damn it, **REQUIP!** " the man shouted and pulled out two guns from his pocket dimension.

"Oh, so you're a mage? This will be fun." the smirk on Natsu's face grew wider as fire erupted from his body and danced around him.

"Hey, isn't that Fairy Tail's Salamander?" one of the Cherry Blossom knights asked when he recognized Natsu's most prominent features, pink hair and destructive flames.

"Yeah, I think that's him." his colleague answered. "Listen, this is going to be a mage fight. Knowing Fairy Tail's reputation and Salamander, there is bound to be property damages. Let's evacuate the remaining people here so we wouldn't get caught in the crossfire. Salamander's saved Fiore once before, I don't think he has any ill intentions toward the jewelry store. We'll observe the fight from a distance and wait for the Salamander to defeat his opponent so we can apprehend them."

"Okay, let's do that. I'll carry the beaten owner." his partner agreed.

The three of them proceeded to evacuate the remaining civilians to a safe area, while one of them gave medical attention to the beaten man. The remaining two observed the fight from a safe distance, Fairy Tail's reputation of being walking natural disasters is something to be reckoned with.

-LINE BREAK-

WITH HAPPY

Happy was able to transport the woman to a safe location. The woman was kneeling and still had tears in her couldn't help but feel bad for her. He had to do one of the many things he learned from Lisanna, offer comfort.

"Hey, don't worry. I'm sure Natsu will pummel that guy to a bloody pulp." Happy said comfortingly while stroking her hand.

The sobbing woman was taken aback by the soothing tone but rather tactless statement the blue cat just said to her. She still appreciated it nonetheless and wiped the last of her tears.

"I'm just worried about my father, he took quite a beating to protect me." she solemnly said.

"I'm sure the knights already did something about it." Happy positively stated. "If you want to, we could fly around and search for them. You're not as heavy as Lucy, so my stamina and magic power will last longer." Happy kindly offered.

"Thank you, Talking Cat-kun." she said hesitantly and smiled. She accepted his offer, even ignoring the slight insult about her weight.

-LINE BREAK-

WITH NATSU

 **"PARALYZING SHOTS!"** the leader shot a barrage of lightning-infused bullets at Natsu, in which he consistently evaded.

The leader thought his plan was working and requipped another magical gun and pointed it in the air above his head. **"MORNING FOG!"**

Natsu's eyes grew wide for a second before a thick layer of fog covered the entire surrounding and made him cough. He could already sense that his opponent was no longer there and made his escape. 'For a gun user, he had good aim but not nearly as good as the Conell's. Even Asuka had much better aim than that loser.' Natsu thought to himself.

"So that was his plan all along, too bad it won't work." Natsu muttered to himself and started tracking down the man's scent.

The leader desperately escaped his opponents clutches using the fog, he wore a special clearing glasses that lets him see through the foggy area. He kept running alley after alley, not minding a few civilians' complain about the fog. Feeling a little better, he slowed down his pace thinking he got away from his pursuer. Then he suddenly felt a searing pain on his back which sent him rolling on to the ground head first. The shockwave of that attack was so strong that most of the fog at the certain area was blown away.

"I could smell your stench for miles you know." he heard a voice say only to reveal that it was the pink-haired freak pursuing him.

The civilians present, already knowing what's about to come immediately ran out of sight, not wanting to be part of the collateral damage.

"What kind of beast are you?" the leader asked while staggering to his feet.

"A dragon, of course." Natsu answered with nonchalance.

 **"REQUIP: COYOTE!"** the leader pulled out a black, two-barreled shot gun and aimed it on Natsu and fired without warning.

Natsu stood his ground and took the attack which earned a look of triumph from his opponent. But the smug look on his face was completely gone when he saw two bullets caught on the former's mouth, clamped by his canine teeth.

Natsu spat out the bullets and dashed to his foe with blinding speed. Before the leader could fire another shot, two of Natsu's fingers were already poking through the barrel.

 **"FIRE DRAGON'S GRIP STRIKE!"** Natsu shouted, which caused an intense burst of flames engulfing them both.

When the raging flames finally died down, two men can be seen. One was lying on the ground suffering burn injuries and unconscious while the other man was boasting his destructive power, spitting flames in the air celebrating his victory by a major beatdown. A number of merchant stands and stores were burned down because of that single devastating attack.

-LINE BREAK-

 **AT MERCURIUS:**

Arcadios, a well-built man, with black hair, wearing the Cherry Blossom Holy Knight armor felt the tremors of Natsu's attack and immediately caught his attention. He then dispatched several knight soldiers to investigate the situation. Since he is the personal guard of the princess of Fiore, he could not accompany his men at the site. The power he felt was tremendous, but at the same time familiar so he did not have the sense of urgency to leave the princess and in the end, opted to stay with her.

"I think it's alright if you chose to accompany your men, Arcadios. Your duty isn't only to protect me but also to lead the Cherry Blossom Holy Knight Squadron." Princess Hisui E. Fiore said. She had jade green hair and eyes, fair skin and is wearing a short white dress, exposing her back. She also wore a tiara with seven gemstones.

"It is quite alright, Hime-sama. Although the magical signature we felt was powerful, I think the one responsible for this didn't have any evil intents, only mischief, we will deal with him soon." Arcadios replied.

-LINE BREAK-

 **WITH NATSU AND HAPPY:**

Natsu and Happy reunited as the knights began cuffing all the robbers and brought them into custody. The beaten shop owner was also taken to the palace along with her daughter to recuperate. The young woman, whose name was Amelia was a stunning lady, not that Natsu would actually notice. She had long, black hair tied in a ponytail, big brown eyes and wore a simple pink dress with white frills. She profusely thanked Natsu and Happy for saving her and her father.

"I cannot thank you enough, Natsu-sama, Happy-kun. As compensation, you can come by to our store anytime and anything you want will be free of charge." Amelia offered.

"Do you sell fish?" Happy instantly asked when he the word 'free'

"Do you sell food?" Natsu added.

"Sorry Natsu-sama, Happy-kun but we own a jewelry store. We sell rings, bracelets, necklaces, gems, things you give to someone special." Amelia answered shyly.

"Oh, you mean a friend?" Natsu asked.

"Yes, that's alright. But when you give jewelry to someone, you see them as someone more than a friend." she answered.

"Best friends?"

She could almost slap her forehead at Natsu's cluelessness. She noticed that Happy was already uninterested in their conversation the moment she said that they don't sell fish and he already has a fish in his mouth not listening to them. But still she answered the best way she could, "Again, that is quite alright. But most people would give it to their girlfriends, lovers or wives."

"Ah, you mean a mate. Sorry but I haven't mated yet, although I am old enough to have one. Don't worry I'll come by your shop when I find mine." Natsu grinned at her.

She blushed a little at his words, she couldn't believe it. It's clear that with his profession, he's been through a lot but he still kept his mind simple and untainted.

A group of knights also approached Natsu saying that the king personally invited him to the palace as well. Thinking only about his aching tummy, he definitely agreed.

"Let's go, Happy. The palace means unlimited free food!" Natsu exclaimed and then dashed off, not even waiting for the knights or Amelia.

"Aye, free fish!"

The people left in the dust could only sweatdrop at the duo's antics, but quickly followed suit.

-LINE BREAK-

 **AT MERCURIUS:**

Just a while ago, the king of the Pergrande Kingdom visited and had a talk with Fiore's king, Toma. The talk was about maintaining diplomatic relations. Since the Magic Council is no more and the threat of Etherion and FACE are gone, it is possible that the Alvarez Empire may declare a full-scale war against Ishgar. After all, they did launch an invasion ten years ago but was halted because of threat of firing Etherion and activating FACE. Friendly relations must be maintained among the countries of Ishgar if they to stand a chance against an enemy as fearsome as the Alvarez Empire.

The Pergrande Kingdom is a country located in the easternmost part of Ishgar. It is also the largest country of Ishgar, many times bigger that Fiore. But with that said and done, there is no denying that most of the strongest mages in the entire continent reside in Fiore, so it is imperative that even the Pergrande Kingdom must ally themselves with Fiore to even hope to stand a chance against Alvarez.

Other countries like Bosco and Minstrel refused to have talks with them since there are still rebellions and civil wars going on in there. While there are others like the countries of Iceberg and Disierto, they were mostly occupied with indigenous people and are living in society very far from civilization. And that makes those places very hard to invade and the harsh climate only adds to that fact. Even until now, Toma doesn't know what's the real reason behind the invasion, he was beginning to have suspicions. It only seemed like Alvarez was only interested in Fiore and the other countries were just an added bonus. If his suspicions are proven true, then he fears of what's about to befall his beloved country.

Ishgar was very much an opposite of Alvarez, while Ishgar is strong in its own right, its forces are separated and divided. Alvarez on the other hand acts as a monolith. Strength in unity against strength in diversity.

-LINE BREAK-

Natsu and the others finally arrived at the palace, then he and Happy directly went to the food table and started to dig in, not even waiting for their host to arrive. Amelia then went to check on her father's condition. The knights on guard did not even dare reprimand Natsu and Happy's behavior, only the Titania is able to accomplish such a feat.

"Of course, it had to be these hooligans." Arcadios said with a disgusted tone as he saw the idiotic duo eating not even bothering to use plates and proper utensils.

"They're as lively as I remember." Hisui smiled at the fond memories. She owed a lot to Natsu and his friends, from helping during the Eclipse incident and even pleading for her case to be given a light punishment.

"Yes, but it's those hooligans who stopped the dragon invasion and eliminated the last corner of the Balam Alliance, Tartaros. We have lot to be thankful for, they will always be honored guests here at Mercurius." Toma E. Fiore said. He was a man who looks like in his late 50's. He was very short barely 3 ft. tall and is wearing striped overalls along with the royal coat.

Hisui was the first one to greet the duo, since they seem to be done eating and rubbing their tummies in satisfaction.

"Hello, Natsu Dragneel. It is nice seeing you again." greeted Hisui with a polite bow.

"Yeah, nice seeing you too." Natsu returned the greeting but could not remember what her name was. "Arcadios, right?"

Hisui sweatdropped at his statement and also a bit miffed that he couldn't remember her name but chose to wave it off and introduce herself formally, "I'm sorry Natsu, but that's my guard's name. My name is Hisui E. Fiore, nice to meet you."

"Natsu Dragneel, nice to meet you too." Natsu replied and shook her hand.

"You have terrible memory, Natsu." Happy teased.

"Shut up, Happy!" Natsu retorted.

Hisui was especially amused when Natsu and Happy soon started bickering about whose smarter until the king approached.

"Natsu my boy, welcome again to Mercurius. Make yourself at home and you may stay as long as you like." the king offered kindly.

"Woah! Thanks old man." Natsu said in appreciation and patted the king's head. "Now I don't have to rent a room in an inn. Don't worry I'll only stay for one night."

"No problem, son." the king smiled.

"Although, you did cause 500,000 jewels worth of property damage." Arcadios said, pitching in on the conversation, while holding up the bill.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll pay for it, Ricardo." Natsu said as he gestured for Happy to prepare their savings. "I can't be causing Gramps too much trouble in my path to strength."

Hisui giggled in amusement of Natsu's antics, while Arcadios just kept quiet and chose not to argue with the pink-haired idiot. He later then excused himself for a bit thinking that Natsu's stupity is contagious.

"Don't worry too much about it lad, the royal family will shoulder bill. You did save several number of citizens after all." Toma offered.

"Really, old man? Thanks a lot!" Natsu said in relief thinking that if he was able to destroy that much everyday, his savings wouldn't last a month.

"I cannot thank you and your guild enough for stopping Tartaros and FACE, it's the least we could do to show our gratitude. So, were you on your way to a mission, Natsu?" the king inquired.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that." Natsu answered. "I'm on a mission to get stronger, to be to protect the ones I care about. As of now, I'm way too weak to protect my friends. I was painfully reminded of that during Tartaros' attack, I will definitely get stronger."

The two listeners were able to see the passion and the perseverance in his eyes.  
For the rest of the day, Natsu regaled his hosts with his stories from Fairy Tail.

When the king finally retired to his chambers, Hisui stayed with him a little more. He told her most of his stories while occasionally bashing Gray calling him a 'pervert' or a 'stripper'. She of course chose which story to believe and which ones were a bit exaggerated. They had talked for hours, Happy had already fallen asleep atop Natsu's head.

"Natsu, I heard about the appearance of Acnologia. How was Fairy Tail able to fend him off?" Hisui asked.

Natsu's whole demeanor darkened when he heard the Black Dragon's name. It caused Hisui to look at him with worry.

"Sorry Natsu, that was tactless of me. You don't have to tell me anything." Hisui apologized, worried that this might be the end of their conversation.

"Igneel." he answed, which caused her eyes to widen, she heard about his search for his foster father some time ago. "Igneel fought his hardest against that bastard. Our dragons, they were inside of us all along, waiting for the perfect opportunity to kill Acnologia. We have the dragons to thank for stopping FACE."

"Sorry for troubling you with that question, Natsu." Hisui apologized once more.

"It's okay Hisui, Igneel will always live on in me." Natsu reassured her. "I will definitely train hard enough and beat the living fuck of Acnologia.

"And I believe you will." she pleasantly said, not even put off by his choice of words.

"You know, you are much nicer than when we first met and you threw us into jail. After that, I thought you were some stuck up brat. Sorry about that." Natsu scratched his head in embarassment.

"Thank you, Natsu. I'm sorry our first meeting couldn't have been more pleasant." the princess said with a slight frown.

"Don't worry its all in the past, we can get along from now on, right?" Natsu grinned at her and offered his hand.

"Yes, let's be friends, Natsu." Hisui replied and shook his hand. She was glad she became friends with him. Even if they only began to knew each other a few hours ago, she feels she could talk and act around him freely. She didn't have to put a mask on, unlike she always did when other noble families visited the palace.

"Well, I should get some rest now, big day tomorrow." Natsu said tiredly

"Where will your first destination be?" Hisui asked.

"Tenroujima."

And with that, they let go of each other's hands. Natsu could still feel the smooth and gentle feeling of Hisui's touch while Hisui felt the wild but comforting feeling of Natsu's warmth.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: New chapter here! Not much to say except read and review.**

 **DISCLAIMER: HIRO MASHIMA OWNS FAIRY TAIL, NOT ME.**

The next day, Natsu Dragneel woke up bright and early to prepare for their year-long journey. He had one of the best sleep ever, courtesy to the bed of course. The palace's bed was even better than Lucy's. He wondered if the guest's bed was that nice, then what would the king or the princess' bed feels like. He'll have to sneak in when he comes back.

He did some light exercise to keep himself awake and took a bath afterwards to freshen up. Happy on the other hand, ate as much fish as he could since he'll be carrying Natsu all the way to Tenroujima. It took them a while to figure where their training starts and only recently they decided to go the first master's home.

A few hours later Natsu and Happy went to the king to announce their departure. Natsu was a bit surprised because not only Toma and Hisui were there to see him off, Amelia was there as well. She was carrying something wrapped in a piece of cloth.

"So Natsu, will you be staying in one place all year long?" Toma asked.

"Not really, I'll only be staying in Tenroujima for a week, after that I'll be going to the country's borders to fight different kinds of beasts and figure things out." Natsu replied.

"Really? Three weeks from now my dear Hisui will also go to the country of Seven. The country of Seven, the Pergrande Kingdom and the Fiore Kingdom will uphold peace talks and also form an alliance. Hisui will represent Fiore while Seven's minister and Pergrande's prince will represent their own. If you happen to be near the area, she would appreciate it if you could pay her a visit." the king requested, thinking that having Natsu at the meeting would increase protection and Hisui would have someone to talk to besides Arcadios.

"Sure, I'll make sure of it." Natsu accepted and looked at Hisui. "I'll definitely see you there, Hisui."

"Thank you, Natsu. I appreciate it." replied Hisui and gave him a small smile.

Natsu was about to leave when he could feel someone tugging his coat.

"Umm, Natsu-sama..." Amelia said hesitantly and gave the thing she was carrying to Natsu. "Thank you again for yesterday, as a token of appreciation, I prepared this boxed lunch for you. Happy-kun I also made different fish dishes for you, I hope you like it."

"Thanks, I'm sure we'll love it." Natsu said and took the lunch box.

"Aye, thanks for the fish!" Happy added.

"Well, that ends our stay here. I really appreciate the free lodging, old man. I'll see you in a few weeks, Hisui. And give my regards to that Enrique guy. Amelia, I hope your father recovers quickly and I hope your offer still stands when I'm back. Alright, next time I'll return, I'll be ten times stronger! Then I'll beat Erza, Gray, Mira, Laxus, Gildarts and Gramps to a pulp! Let's go Happy!" Natsu loudly declared.

"Aye sir!" Happy followed.

Then the duo dashed out of Mercurius so fast that they were out of sight within a few seconds.

"Who's Enrique?" a curious Toma asked.

"I think he means Arcadios." Hisui replied.

-LINE BREAK-

After five hours of flying nonstop, Natsu and Happy could finally see the coast of Tenroujima. For non-Fairy Tail members, it would have took them forever to find the island because of a very strong cloaking spell, but for Natsu and Happy, it only took a few hours.

Happy was running low on magical power since he's been using his Aera for hours straight. Happy needed to land soon before his wings disappear, so using every last bit of strength he had left, he used his Max Speed to get to the island.

Immediately after landing, Natsu went to find a place where the could set up camp. Happy was too exhausted so he just slept on Natsu's head. Tenroujima hasn't changed much except for some remnants of the battle they had against Grimoire Heart. The Tenrou tree stood tall as if it never had been cut down in the first place. Weird, unidentified creatures still roam around in the forest, which was good news for Natsu because he never have to worry about food. Using the wilderness skills he got from Igneel, he was able to make Happy and himself a small hut.

The hut was made up of mainly straw with a few rocks and twigs. It looked like the hut made by him and Lisanna when they were children.

Since the sun was starting to set, Natsu decided that it's time for dinner, so he woke Happy up and prepared the food Amelia gave two enjoyed the food Amelia prepared for them immensely. Natsu was having all the meat while Happy was having all the fish.

"I'll start my training tomorrow, Happy. You'll help me right?" Natsu asked while chewing on his food.

"Okay. I'll do my own training too. I'm not a strong swordsman like Lily and I can't foretell the future like Carla, but there must be something I can do to be useful." said Happy with a sad but determined look. He was feeling down that he was the only exceed with no special ability.

Natsu was worried for his partner's downcast expression because he would usually say 'Aye!' so he decided to lift his spirits up, "Nonsense, Happy. You're the fastest exceed I know!"

Seeing his best friend's faith in him gradually raised Happy's spirits up, "Aye! And I'll become even faster, Natsu!"

"That's the Happy I raised!"

After dinner, the duo engaged in idle conversation saying they miss Fairy Tail,Lucy's bed, beating up Gray, Carla and many other random things. They continued to talk for a few hours until they slowly drifted off to sleep.

-LINE BREAK-

At the crack of dawn, Natsu already started warming up by jogging along their campsite and to the coast back and forth. Happy also started flying through the forest at his Max Speed, he also used the trees as obstacles to increase his agility.

After warming up, Natsu activated his Lightning Flame Dragon Mode to test how long he can last in that form. He then went to a secluded area to test how strong his attacks are. With the help of his Second Origin, he can now last much longer in his Lightning Flame Dragon Mode. He could now cast his lightning-enhanced spells consecutively before feeling the need to recover his magic power. His Lightning Flame Dragon Roar is stronger than ever, probably strong enough to destroy a mountain.

After a few hours of training and reminiscing, Natsu then thought about a lost power he once had. 'If I could somehow bring it out or should I say bring it back, I'll definitely get a lot stronger. But the question is, how?' he was lost in his thoughts, which has never happened before.

"Hey Happy, do you remember that Zaraki guy? asked Natsu. They were currently having breakfast at their campsite.

"Who's Zaraki?" the exceed asked back.

"You know, the one who used God Slayer Magic. Long blonde hair, super cocky and got his ass kicked by me." Natsu aswered boastfully.

"His name was Zancrow, though."

"Yeah, whatever. But I think I could bring out his flames for a bit. Though I wouldn't be able to use Flame God Slaying Magic, I could use those black flames to supplement my Fire Dragon Slayer Magic just like I do with Laxus' lightning. If I could pull that off, I'll definitely become even stronger."

"How are you gonna call out Zancrow's flames, Natsu?" the curious exceed asked.

"I don't know about that but I guess I should increase my overall magic power while trying to lower the magic power consumption when I cast a spell." Natsu said with the unsureness in his voice.

"That's actually a good idea, Natsu. I'll try that too." said Happy enthusiastically.

Throughout the rest of the day, Natsu and Happy continued training. They also started to put on weights, through a magical item they bought in the form of a belt, handcuffs and shin guards. You can adjust their weight from 5 lbs to 1000 lbs. This was mainly used to increase speed and stamina. Natsu put these items on and was dragging a total of 500 lbs which really didn't faze him at all since he's carried much heavier things, Lucy for example, in his own opinion at least.

Happy, despite his looks was quite strong. He's able to carry Natsu for hours who weighs more than a hundred pounds. He simply wrapped a shin guard on his back and set it to 350 lbs, since that's his guess on how much Lucy weighs. He really could feel his speed waning down whenever he carried the blonde.

At the end of the day, Natsu was dragging a total of 1000 lbs so he could feel the strain on his body and begin surpassing his current limits.

-LINE BREAK-

After a long day of training, the duo was exhausted to the bone and were sleeping soundly in their hut.

Natsu suddenly finds himself in total darkness. He could see nothing, hear nothing and smell nothing. He shouted and shouted until something appeared in front of him that was too bright for his eyes to see. When the blinding radiance finally died down, he could see flames in the shape of a dragon insignia. That small source of light lit up a huge portion of the dark, unknown void he was currently in.

He stepped closer to the flame, wanting to eat it. But even ten feet away from the flame, he couldn't take another step closer because it was too hot. This was the hottest fire he ever felt

 _ **"Not yet Natsu, in time you will."**_ a loud voice suddenly said.

The loud voice got Natsu out of his trance, "Where are you? Show yourself!" show yourself, Natsu shouted.

 _ **"Remember Natsu, I will always be with you."**_ the loud voice said.

Natsu, remembering the voice and tone of the words made him cry, "Igneel!"

Natsu bolted up and looked around, he was at their campsite. It was still nighttime, the stars were still abundant outside. 'Igneel... a dream? No, it felt so real. I could still feel the heat of that flame' Natsu thought to himself.

He went outside to clear up his mind and get some air. After a few minutes, Natsu managed to calm down and went back to sleep.

-LINE BREAK-

The next day, the duo resumed their exercises. Natsu would purposely exhaust his magic power, but not to a life-threatening extent. With it, he is gradually increasing his total magic power while mastering his spells to the extent that it takes less magic power to perform his more complicated spells.

Natsu and Happy continued this routine for a week. They fed on the wildlife Tenrou offered, mostly the wild pigs and fish. Natsu would sometimes challenge a Doscadon to a fight, they're enormous, bipedal, dinosaur-like beasts covered in scales. Natsu would fight them without using his magic as part of his training. There might be times when he can't use his magic in a fight. Since he's not a weapon user, improving his fighting without covering his fists and feet in flames is the best way to go.

The insignia still kept appearing in Natsu's dreams, it would even talk to him. He learned that it was Igneel's dying will, the last piece of his power which Natsu will inherit in time. This alone gave Natsu a massive boost of motivation to get stronger.

 _ **'Natsu, all fire is my domain, it can be yours too.'**_ he would hear Igneel's voice say. He soon learned what Igneel meant by this, it meant that he could change the properties of his fire. After the Grand Magic Games, he started to make his flames be similar to that of Atlas Flame that burn away magic. He could already use it to some degree but still have ways to go. He also worked on turning his whole body into fire, but still lacks control because his clothes would burn to ashes. But good thing they were in the wilderness, he can be butt-naked as much as he wants.

Their stay in Tenroujima was short but fruitful because both of them showed results of their hardwork. Natsu increased his magical power and could now enter Dragon Force freely, even if it's only up to a minute. Happy was now faster and more agile, the air currents on high altitude no longer bothered him. If they could show this much result in one week of training, there's no telling what a whole year would give.

The duo were in front of Mavis Vermillion's grave offering flowers and bidding farewell.

"We'll keep getting stronger, First Master. Please watch over us." Natsu smiled and put several irises on her tomb.

 **One Week Later at Fiore's Borders:**

"Please, have mercy. I pro-" a beaten up man pleaded before getting knocked out.

The were a group of bandits trying to rob Natsu but instead got themselves beaten up quite badly. Now all five of them are tied up in a tree with tattered clothes and black eyes.

"Man, those guys were total weaklings I want to fight someone strong." Natsu whined and kept on walking with Happy.

"You'll find someone, Natsu. I can feel it." Happy cheered.

For the past several days, Natsu and Happy were travelling through the country's borders and had been robbed by bandits four times. Natsu would purposely flaunt some of his jewels to lure them out, but the ones who fell for it were only the weak ones. They weren't even mages, just your average thugs who thinks they're the shit just because they have a sword.

"Ne, Natsu, do you think Princess Hisui passed through here already?" his Exceed asked.

"I doubt it Happy, I don't pickup her scent or Claudio's in this trail, so they mustn't have reached here yet." Natsu answered casually.

Happy sweatdropped and didn't even bother correcting Arcadios' name, knowing that Natsu would never remember it.

 **Several Days Ago at Crocus:**

"Be well, my dear Hisui, I hope everything goes well and we can form an alliance." Toma E. Fiore said as parting words to Hisui.

"As the Princess of Fiore and your only heiress, I will make sure of it, father." Hisui assured as she prepared to embark their journey in the royal carriage.

"I too, will make sure an alliance is formed." Arcadios added.

The carriage has departed and Toma followed it with his eyes until it couldn't be seen anymore. Since the Minister of Seven also wanted to form an alliance, they agreed to meet in Seven's capital city, Calcetta. They also wanted to let the youth know of what may happen and the reason for the alliance, so they let their respective heirs represent their countries. However, there was a lingering feeling that laid on Toma's chest and that feeling was conflict. Tough times are ahead of Ishgar. He hoped that Natsu Dragneel would be present at the assembly, he may not know it but Natsu's name spread like wildfire in the magical world after the defeat of Future Rogue. His presence there could help in the formation of an alliance.

-LINE BREAK-

 **Present Day:**

"Beat it, jerks!" Natsu shouted as he punched a vulcan in the face, giving it a black eye.

Natsu had been attacked by a band of forest vulcans by entering their teritory unannounced. He dragged the fight all the way to the main road and spent the past half an hour clobbering them. Satisfied with his work, he and Happy continue their travel deep into the forest

-LINE BREAK-

In a few hours, Hisui will arrive at Calcetta to attend the assembly. With her personal guard Arcadios and a number of the esteemed Royal Guards, they were making steady pace towards their destination. The meeting will be held by the next day.

But as they kept treading on, they noticed several beaten up vulcans on the side of the road. The sight unnerved the princess, there was a feeling of imminent danger. Arcadios immediately told the men to stay alert.

"Do not fret Hime-sama, whatever this abomination may be, I'm sure our skilled Royal Guards will be able to deal with them." Arcadios assured.

"Thank you, Arcadios. I should focus my mind on the upcoming assembly." stated Hisui gratefully but still feeling nervous.

-LINE BREAK-

After beating up the Vulcans, Natsu and Happy went deep into the forest to hunt for food and set up camp. Although, there was a nearby city a few miles ahead, he liked sleeping with the sound of wilderness. It reminded him with his times with Igneel and Happy has no complains as long as there is fish.

They immediately resumed their travels the next day following the main road. Natsu's strong sense of smell then picked up something quite familiar. It was the scent of the one they were waiting for. It was Hisui's scent, the fragrance of the unsullied, verdant forest tinged with the spice of underground minerals.

"Let's carry on Happy, we'll meet up with Hisui soon. They might be in the nearby city." Natsu said and jogged his pace.

"Aye!" followed Happy.

Following Hisui's scent, they arrived at city Calcetta in half an hour. It was busy like Crocus but also had some differences, One would be the building's structures, while Crocus' buildings were structured in a rectangular and pointed manner, the ones in Calcetta are formed in a dome-like or cylindrical shape. Not that Natsu would bother to notice, but if the girls from Team Natsu were with him right now, they too would show appreciation in Calcetta's unique architecture.

The other unique thing about Calcetta is the fact that it's a blossoming city surrounded by dense forest. This vast forest actually stretches through Bosco and Stella.

Hisui's scent led the duo to something looking like a resthouse, situated on top of a hill. Natsu and Happy continue to tread towards it but suddenly, without warning, an explosion occured. And it's coming from the resthouse where he was going and where Hisui's scent was. Worry and fear crept unto the duo's spines for their friend's safety.

"Let's hurry, Happy!" Natsu yelled in a commanding tone.

Happy immediately obeyed and carried his partner towards the burning resthouse.

-LINE BREAK-

 **Moments Earlier:**

Hisui and her escorts were led to a beatiful-looking resthouse with a nice view of the city and the surrounding forest. The soft, green grass was trimmed perfectly.

A tall, middle-aged man was waiting for them on the front door. He was almost bald with a receding hairline, he was wearing a black suit with white gloves. His most prominent feature is a skull tattoed on his forehead.

"A pleasant morning to you all, I am your humble servant in this fine day. Please come in, the meeting is about to start." the man greeted respectfully.

Although the man's appearance was quite suspicious, Arcadios chose to shrug it off because the way he greeted them carried an air of sincerity and grace. Hisui and the others went inside and followed the man's lead.

"Here we are, please come in." the man gestured.

They were led to a grand room with marble floor and fine furniture, the windows were also just as grand. They were surprised that nobody was present yet. A huge chair began to turn to reveal the occupant.

"Well, hello there everyone. It is a fine day today. Please make yourselves comfortable." the occupant offered.

Hisui and the others were shocked at who the mysterious man was. The man had brown-colored hair styled to resemble that of a rabbit's ears. He is dressed in fancy robes with boots. He also had a scar on the bridge of his nose. His most recognizable feature is the wheel of blades that he wears on his back.

Fiore's delegates reluctantly took a seat and looked the man in front of them. The man radiated power and exuberance. The bald servant stood beside him.

"To think that you would take part in this assembly, I am almost certain that an alliance will be formed." said Arcadios finally having the courage to speak. His voice carried an air of trust and respect towards the man.

The man just gave a calm smile at Arcadios' words. He stood up and looked through the window.

"I'm sorry to say this, but there won't be an alliance happening." the man grinned at his words.

"Huh? What do you me-" Arcadios said in confusion but was cut off.

"I'll just cut to the chase here. What I mean to say is that Seven and the Pergrande Kingdom have agreed to the Alvarez Empire's terms and that was to cut off ties with Fiore. They were fine with it as long as we don't annihilate them. So in other words, the Alvarez Empire is only after Fiore. Any allied country to Fiore will be decimated." the man stated in a proud tone.

Hisui and the others could not find the words to describe the situation they were currently in. She knew the true purpose of this meeting. It wasn't only to improve relations with other countries but also to stand against an imminent bloodshed. She only realized how serious the matter truly was until she found out the truth.

"D-does this m-mean you've defected?" Hisui stuttered. She had never been so nervous in her life.

"Yes, my beautiful princess. One year from now, Fiore will be razed to the ground. This is only a sample of the Alvarez Empire's strength. Jacob, if you please." the man said with an evil smile.

Arcadios and the Royal Guards were livid at the man's act of treason. He was of Ishgar's strongest forces, but for him to betray his native land at the time his help was needed was unforgivable. In a fit of rage they all drew their swords and attacked him but in an instant, Arcadios and all five Royal Guards disappeared without a trace.

With a single clap of his hand, the bald man, whose name was Jacob vanished without a trace together with Arcadios and the Royal Guards. Hisui was now trembling at the men's frightening abilities.

"W-what d-did you do to them?!" Hisui asked fearfully. She was also angry at they did to her companions.

"Worry not, Princess. I can assure you they are still alive and you will see them again. This is merely an introduction, one year from now the Alvarez Empire will lay siege on Ishgar. The country of Seven and the Pergrande Kingdom have chosen not to interfere with our goals and in exchange for that, we will not touch them during the invasion. However, countries like Bosco and Minstrel which are already war-torn as we speak, will probably get annihilated first." said the man calmly while hiding a smirk.

"T-tell me, what are your goals?" Hisui questioned, mustering the courage.

"I can only say it doesn't concern you at all, your majesty." he replied nonchalantly. "But before I take my leave, I am going to burn this place down. If you want to live another day, then hurry up and escape. I don't really care whether you live or die."

Immense magic power surged through the area to the point that Hisui was having difficulty breathing. She may not be a mage but without a doubt in her mind, this was the second strongest presence she ever felt. _'This magic power is almost as powerful as the dragons during the invasion.'_ Hisui grimly thought. Using all her remaining strength left, she stood up and began to dart to the door.

The robed man raised both his hands and then raging hot flames started to dance around and started consuming the entire building returning it to dust and ashes. Hisui was only barely able to get out of the burning building. She worried for her companions but she couldn't think clearly because the flames were still in pursuit.

-LINE BREAK-

Natsu and Happy were hot on their trails to search for Hisui and the others. They spotted the burning building and immediately looked around. He found Hisui running from the fire. _'Bloody red flames?! That's definitely not a normal fire.'_ he thought, curious of the strange but very hot flames engulfing the building.

"Happy, take Hisui and get out of here! I sense an extremely powerful presence" Natsu commanded his partner.

"Aye. Be careful Natsu, whoever this guy is, he's much stronger than you." Happy said, one of the few times he was serious.

"I know." he replied without emotion.

Nearing Hisui, Happy dropped Natsu and picked up the princess. Once Natsu was on the ground, Natsu consumed the red flames. It was definitely hotter and more powerful than his current flames but that just made it more delicious and rejuvenating to him.

"Hot damn, that was good." he said and wiped his mouth as if he just had a good meal.

"Sorry we're late Princess Hisui, I'll get you out of here while Natsu holds the guy off" Happy said and immediately flew off to the forest. "Man, girls sure are heavy."

She felt a little ticked at Happy's jab but she just shrugged it off due to the situation they were currently in.

"I hope Natsu will be alright, that man is vastly powerful." she said anxiously

"Don't worry, Natsu isn't a stranger to stronger opponents. And he will only focus on escaping rather than duking it out with him. This is where Gildart's lesson will be applied." Happy assured.

-LINE BREAK-

Natsu was able to consume the wreathing flames and now he was currently at full tank. As the flames slowly vanished, an unfamiliar robed man was revealed to Natsu with a circle of blades on his back. There was a displeased look on his face. _'This magical power is insanely strong, probably surpassing Gildarts'. If I try to fight him, I'll be looking like a child trying to kick a grown man's ass.'_ Natsu thought. He could feel himself quiver at his presence but chose to stand his ground.

"Oh? Are you the knight with no armor? Hahaha, you know I did not plan on killing the princess, only injuring her a bit." the man said in a condescending tone.

"But seeing you here with that atrocious smell of yours, and you even managed to consume my flames, I will definitely kill you, Natsu Dragneel." he continued changing his tone an angry one towards the end.

"Huh? You know who I am? Who are you anyway?" Natsu questioned, a bit shocked that the man knew his name.

"Of course I know who you are, you are definitely the face of the dragon slayers. You were the most dangerous piece when the dragons invaded Crocus. As for your second question, I am appalled that you don't know little ol' me. I thought I was eminent enough to have caught your attention." the robed man replied with a voice feigning hurt.

"Your flames, they were not from a normal fire mage's. Are you a slayer? Natsu asked in a serious tone.

The man began to chuckle at Natsu's question which unnerved the pinkette. "I am a dragon slayer, like you Natsu. Although the seven of you were all pathetic, not even capable of killing one dragon during the invasion. You lot have no right to call yourselves dragon slayers. I for one, will make dragons crumble."

"Are you saying you've slayed a dragon before? The other dragon slayers were just as cocky until they faced the true might of a dragon." Natsu said while gritting his teeth.

"Not yet of course, that's why nobody knew of my main magic being dragon slayer. I am aiming for that self-proclaimef king himself." the man smirked.

"Hahahaha, you'll be dead on the ground before you could even blink." Natsu mused.

"Oh, really?" the man clearly pissed off to the point that the whites in his eyes became pitch-black. He cocked his fist to gather up power and charged, **"PURGATORY DRAGON'S INFERNAL HELL!"**

Natsu was barely able to react in time and caught his flaming fist with his own flaming palms, **"FIRE DRAGON'S GRIP STRIKE!"**

A giant explosion occured that the people in the city panicked at what just happened. When the flames died down, the robed man was seen smirking and unscathed. Natsu on the other hand, already lost his waistcoat and already had bruises on his body. 'Damn, he's too strong. I should drag this fight somewhere else.' Natsu thought and then darted off to the mountains far from the city and human settlement.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Third chapter is here. Sorry if I forgot to put a disclaimer on the first two, but I've edited it which was an embarrassing mistake. No wonder I thought something was off. The length of the chapters I will post will be from 3000-5000 words, that's acceptable right? Not much to say except read and review.**

 **DISCLAIMER: HIRO MASHIMA OWNS FAIRY TAIL, NOT ME.**

Happy and Hisui were able to escape far away from the City of Calcetta. They were currently in the middle of the vast forest of Seven. Happy carried Hisui all the way to the most dense part of the forest while she was carrying Natsu's backpack. Hisui was still a little dizzy from the flight because of the many trees they have to evade and the speed of Happy's flight.

"Happy, are you alright?" Hisui asked while clutching her head to shake off the dizziness

"I think I should be the one asking you that." the exceed replied.

"I am alright, just a little dizzy. I'm worried about Natsu, that explosion was massive. The magic power and the shock wave was enough to destroy all of Calcetta if it hadn't been contained." Hisui said with a frown.

"Natsu will be fine. He's not an idiot when it comes to fighting." Happy reassured.

 _'Yes, but this time he won't be fighting, he'll be escaping.'_ Hisui fearfully thought, _'Please be alright, Natsu.'_

-LINE BREAK-

The Fire Dragon's golden flames clashed against the Purgatory Dragon's scarlet flames. The monstrous flames fought for dominance but ultimately the scarlet flames burned the golden flames. Everything within half a kilometer-long radius were ashes. Natsu already fled to the mountains so he can drag the fight without any civilian casualties and collateral damages that will be charged on him.

 _'Damn, my flames got burned. This creep is in a whole different league than me. I don't stand a chance of beating him, as of now. But still, I have to focus on getting the hell outta' here.'_ Natsu thought, he could feel his legs trembling from the sheer magical power the robed man was radiating.

"Are you afraid, Natsu? Well, that's to be expected. I was once the strongest mage in Ishgar after all." the man boasted.

Natsu's eyes were wide in shock at hearing this. With the power he's giving off, it didn't sound too far-fetched. The man whose eyes were pitch-black, was enjoying the look on Natsu's face.

"So, your element is fire as well?" Natsu questioned. He steeled his resolve because he could not let someone best him in his own element.

"I'll show you something else." the man grinned and clapped his hand, **"CAVERN DRAGON'S EARTH DESTRUCTION!"**

Feeling that the ground beneath him is about to crumble, Natsu immediately jumped up and propelled his legs with fire to evade. In just a second, the mountain they were standing on were nothing more than a heap of pebbles.

Natsu was nervous now more than ever, it's true that he himself can destroy a mountain with one spell, but that spell was one of his strongest, the Lightning Flame Dragon's Roar. This man in front of him can do it with just a clap of his hands.

"Who are you? And why can you use two separate elements?" Natsu asked, although he felt fear at his presence, his curiosity was even stronger.

"Well, I should let you know the name of your executioner. I am God Serena, in Arakitasia, I am known as the Hybrid Theory. As for your second question, I am a second generation dragon slayer with eight dragon lacrimas in me. I am stronger than the seven of you combined, I am the strongest dragon slayer in existence!" the man named God Serena declared. This man loves to boast.

Natsu was gobsmacked when he heard of eight dragon lacrimas infused in his body. But he soon recovered when God Serena claimed to be the 'strongest dragon slayer.'

"Sorry pal, even though I hate to admit it, the strongest dragon slayer is that self-proclaimed bastard." Natsu scoffed, denying his claim.

"Choose your words carefully, Dragneel. You are about to die." God Serena retorted in a pissed off tone.

Natsu gathered his second wind and crouched to the ground. "Enough talk, **FIRE DRAGON'S SWORD HORN!** " he yelled and charged straight at God Serena with torrents of flame covering his body.

"Tch, you never learn do you? **NEPTUNE DRAGON'S CIRCLE OF WATER!** " God Serena yelled and swiped his hands calling forth volumes of water effectively dousing Natsu's flames at the same time damaging his body. The attack also created a massive amount of steam.

 **"LIGHTNING FLAME DRAGON'S FIRING HAMMER!"** Natsu attacked and used the lack of visibilty to his advantage. A blast of fire enhanced with lightning came out of Natsu's fist. When the steam was blown away, God Serena was shown holding up his right palm forward. There wasn't even a scratch on him from blocking the attack.

 _'He tanked it?!'_ Natsu thought, his eyes wide in disbelief. _'I defeated an Etherious with that attack, yet I couldn't even singe his palm.'_

"My turn." God Serena smirked and suddenly disappeared. " **HURRICANE DRAGON'S... SHREDDING FIST!"** Before Natsu could react, God Serena's right fist connected to his gut. Gusts of wind tore his midsection and stripped away his movement. He was sent flying to a giant rock.

Natsu was clutching his wounded gut trying to heal faster by cauterizing the wound. _'I can't do anything against this rabbit-eared bastard, Even if I try to escape, he's a dragon slayer. He'll be able to track me down.'_ Natsu thought while gritting his teeth. _'I left the guild to get stronger, not_ _to get killed. Even so, no way in hell will I ever give up! I am someone who protects! I want to see everyone again!'_ he shouted in his thoughts.

 _ **'Natsu, all fire is my domain.'**_ Natsu suddenly heard a booming voice inside his head. _ **'All fire is my domain, all fire is my domain, ALL FIRE IS YOUR DOMAIN!'**_ The voice gave him renewed determination to stand against his foe.

"Yes, let's do this Igneel!" Natsu muttered to himself. He shakily stood up and put his guard against God Serena. He gathered all his remaining magic power left. An image of a dragon can be seen at his back.

"Oh? So you're serious now? That is quite the change in power you have there. As you are now, it's safe to say you qualify as a Wizard Saint candidate." God Serena commented, still smirking. **"NEPTUNE DRAGON'S ROAR!"** he reared his head back and unleashed a blast of deep-blue water from his mouth.

Natsu quickly dodged the attack by sidestepping and charged at God Serena summoning every ounce power left in his magic container. " **DRAGON SLAYER SECRET ART: BLACK LOTUS: EXPLODING FLAME BLADE!"** he shouted the name of his newfound attack.

Even God Serena was taken aback at this, it was the first time he's seen a spell like this. The winds he gathered in his arms were sucked away by the torrents of black and golden flames coming off of Natsu's hands. He took on some of the attack and was sent back a few steps. The sleeves of his robe was torn and had a few bruises on his arms. He was now wearing a displeasured look on his face.

Natsu was heavily panting, his magical power almost depleted. _'I won't last long, I hope my plan works. Until then, I just have to be patient and wait for the right moment.'_ Natsu thought. It was the first time he used his brain to actually flee from his opponent and not the other way around.

"Tch. To think you could actually do this to me, it is quite impressive. If you hadn't been stuck in Tenrou for seven years, I would've had a harder time against you." God Serena begrudgingly admitted. "But now, it's time to die! **HURRICANE DRAGON'S SHREDDING FIST BARRAGE!"** he yelled and fired at Natsu with gusts of wind coating his hands.

Natsu continued to dodge the assault with difficulty. God Serena was giving him no room to react and think. A swift, unsuspecting blow connected to his face and he was sent crashing through a rock ledge.

"You fought valiantly, Natsu Dragneel. Be honored that a God will be the one who will deliver the killing blow." God Serena stated with a smug smirk. "As tribute to the Salamander, I will kill you with your own element."

 _'Chance!'_ Natsu thought.

 **"PURGATORY DRAGON'S INFERNAL HELL!"** God Serena attacked and hit Natsu on his chest. Scarlet flames erupted and wreaked havoc, a massive crater can be seen and God Serena was seen at the center of it. Scarlet flames danced around him, he had a smug look on his face at successfully killing Natsu.

He jumped out of the crater and admired his handiwork. He put off his scarlet flames since the Purgatory Dragon's flames was something that never goes out unless it is overpowered or willed by the caster.

"This is the power of the Spriggan Twelve, each one of us is capable of wiping out an entire country." he muttered to himself. "With my defection, Ishgar has now become a land abandoned by the Gods." he continued and walked away silently.

-LINE BREAK-

Happy led Hisui to their camp where they agreed they would meet. Hisui was impressed at how good Happy is in fishing. Happy had single-handedly provided both of their lunches, he even insisted to cook for her instead. She was a little embarrassed that she was outdone by a talking cat. The food the exceed prepared tasted pretty decent to Hisui, given her social standing. They were currently sitting on a log with a steadily burning fire in front of them after finishing their lunch.

"Thank you for the food, Happy. You are quite the chef and you really know how to handle yourself in the wilderness." Hisui complimented.

"Don't mention it, we may look like it but Natsu and I are capable of preparing food although it's only the most basic dishes. Even in Magnolia, we pretty much live in the middle of nowhere so sometimes when we get hungry, we just hunt for dinner." Happy admitted.

"You live very simple lives, Happy. It must be fun." she giggled.

"It sure is! I think everyone in the guild does that. Just suck up everything out of life." the exceed beamed.

"Yes, I like that kind of mindset." the princess uttered. "But don't you think we should be looking for Natsu? It has been a while." she continued, her tone becoming serious at the end.

"I'll look for him, you stay here in case he comes back." Happy suggested.

"But Happy, are you alright with this?"

"I'll be fine and besides, I can fly. It'll be much faster this way, just keep the fire burning to ward off beasts." Happy pointed out.

The Princess of Fiore could only nod at the exceed's words since, she could not argue at the truth behind Happy's words. The three countries were supposed to form an alliance but the enemy got to them first and things went downhill fast. She might not show it but she was very anxious at the moment. First, her companions were taken away from her and she has no idea where they were, she could only put faith at the enemy's words of them still alive. Then, she's worried about Natsu who was nowhere to be found and given his reckless nature anything could happen. And lastly, she fears of what might happen to Fiore in the near future, the strength their enemies displayed was beyond her imagination.

"Don't worry, Princess. I'll bring Natsu back." Happy reassured, seeing the anxiety on Hisui's face.

"Please be careful, Happy" she whispered.

-LINE BREAK-

It had been an hour since God Serena punctured a hole in Natsu's chest and set the surrounding area ablaze. God Serena had quietly walked away thinking that his opponent is dead. He failed to notice that behind a rock, a small, scarlet-colored flame was hanging on and never went out. It was small, just the size of a candle light.

The scarlet flame slowly got bigger until it began to change shape. From a small flame it morphed into the shape of a man. The man was of average height, he appeared to be in his late teens, slightly tanned skin, even-toned body and the most distinctive feature is his spiky pink hair. He wasn't wearing anything apart from a white, scaly scarf wrapped around his neck and is currently panting in exhaustion. The said young man was none other than Natsu Dragneel, who apart from his scarf, is currently butt-naked.

"Man, I'm beat." he muttered tiredly."Glad I pulled that off. It's amazing what 'thinking' can do."

When God Serena's spell connected, Natsu immediately changed his form, from man to fire. He was able to do it before God Serena hit his vitals. He feared that the rabbit-haired man might have seen through his ruse, so he decided to wait until he was long gone to change back into a man. Natsu realized that the Purgatory Dragon's flames are capable of burning through almost anything and will not be put out unless it is overpowered or if the caster wills it. His sees God Serena as a rabbit-haired asshole, an overconfident punk which made him think that he might overlook his little trick and walk away oblivious. The plan seemed to work but looking back now, he was still left in fear and in awe of the man's strength. Even if he were to team up with the other dragon slayers in his guild, he wasn't confident that they were enough to take him out.

"I still have a lot of work to do" he sighed in disappointment. He was still way behind against the top tier mages in Earthland. "But first, I gotta find Happy and Hisui."

-LINE BREAK-

It had been an hour since Happy set off to find Natsu and as each minute passes by she grows more and more nervous. She couldn't even sit down without the feeling in her chest tightening. She just paced aimlessly back and forth the campsite to keep herself distracted.

In the serenity of the forest, things can be heard more easily. She caught the sound of rustled leaves from a distance. She wanted to call out but decided against it because she doesn't know if it's a friend or foe and if it's the latter, she doesn' t want to draw attention to herself. Instead she silently picked up a twig where there is still a glowing ember on its tip. She could feel that the sound is coming towards her so she shakingly pointed the stick to where the sound was coming.

"Happy, can you fetch my spare-" the figure appeared to be Natsu and was walking casually towards Hisui. "Oh hey Hisui, I hope you weren't hurt or anything." Natsu greeted but the green-haired princess' face was tomato-red and immediately turned away from him and crouched to the ground, covering her face.

All her worries vanished for a moment at the sight of Natsu. She was actually elated to see the pinkette safe but the situation he put them in right now was just too much for her to bear. At the moment, Natsu who apart from his scarf is only wearing a single leaf that covered his manhood. Her innocence about the male reproductive organ was already ruined when the Jade Dragon Zirconis displayed his magic which strips away clothes or 'human dignity', as the dragon put it. In all her life as a princess, she's never seen an ability so pitiful.

Remembering hundreds of knights in their birthday suit, brought back unpleasant memories in her mind. She thought that Natsu could have taken on Zirconis with no problem since his powers wouldn't have affected him.

"N-n-n-atsu, w-w-hat are you wearing?!" she stuttered miserably in her question, the red on her face still wouldn't go away even if she wasn't looking.

"A leaf, isn't that obvious?" the dragon slayer answered, tilting his head. Igneel's scarf was a part of him, so he didn't think of it as clothing, it also turns into fire when he wants it to, probably due to Igneel's magic. "If you're asking for what species of plant it came from, then I absolutely have no idea." the pinkette continued, still covering his jewels with a leaf.

"I m-mean, why are you d-dressed like that?!" she couldn't ask her question without stuttering. She still refused to turn around and look at Natsu.

"Funny story actually, I'll you when I get dressed and when Happy gets here." the seemingly clueless teen said and walked towards Hisui and patted her head gently. "I'm relieved you're alright, Hisui."

Hisui was comforted and at the same unnerved at Natsu's words and gesture. The tone of his voice carried a warm, gentle feeling but the fact that he was beside her and only covering himself with a leaf made her even more uncomfortable.

"Then please put on some clothes first!" she almost begged, wanting to get out of the embarrassing situation they were curently in.

"Okay, sheesh. Just so you know Hisui, I'm not a pervert like that stripper queen, Gray. Sometimes I'm worried whenever he's near Wendy, I mean he could be a closet pedophile for all we know." Natsu said and walked towards where his backpack is.

Hisui giggled at his statement. "Thank you for your concern, Natsu. I wouldn't know what I would have done if you and Happy had not been there." Hisui said solemnly, still not looking at Natsu.

"Don't mention it. We've got your back, just call for us when you need help." Natsu said and gave her his toothy grin. Even though she couldn't see it, she knew it was there.

"NATSU!" a third voice shouted, a flying blue cat came out of the bushes. "How could you do that Natsu?! I thought such things were impossible for you. Lucy's been a bad influence on you!" the blue cat, Happy shouted indignantly at his best friend.

"Happy, this isn't wh-" Natsu tried to explain but was cut off.

"There's nothing to say Natsu, you're caught red-handed. I thought you were eventually gonna give in to Lucy and be with her but to think that you have ulterior motives on Princess Hisui, how indecent of you Natsu. You were seducing the princess by pulling off a 'Gray'. Shame on you Natsu, I thought of you as a father, turns out my father was also a pervert." Happy cried in shame.

"Seduce?!" Hisui said with an extremely flustered look on her face. The situation couldn't get more complicated. All of this misunderstanding was simply too much for the prim and proper Princess of Fiore to handle in a single day. She had to commend Lucy for keeping with two. Not a second later she fainted, since it was the easiest option to take in order to deal with the situation.

"Now look what you did Happy, the princess fainted. Looks like I'll have to wait for her to come about." Natsu sighed and proceeded to change clothes.

-LINE BREAK-

About half an hour later, Hisui regained consciousness from her shock. She looked around and noticed that she was still on the same place as before. Natsu and Happy were sitting on logs talking in front of the campfire. She fixed her appearance and quietly approach them, she was relieved that Natsu was wearing proper clothes this time. Now that she looked at it, she noticed that he was wearing exactly the same thing as before, black waistcoat, white trousers, sandals, and the white scaly scarf. _'He must buy sets of those'_ she thought in amusement of the dragon slayer's fashion sense.

"That was my bad, Natsu. I thought you were about to do inappropriate things. I overreacted a bit, since you're always surrounded by women all the time and those old pervs Macao, Wakaba and Master Makarov are always talking about indecent things, I thought they might have corrupted you." Happy apologized.

"Yeah, I always hear them talking about boobs and butts. I don't know what's so great about them." Natsu said with a confused expression.

"I'm glad you don't Natsu, it seems you're still as dense as ever!" Happy cheered.

"Hey, what happened to your heartfelt apology?!"

It seems that the duo were talking about the misunderstanding earlier. Their conversation started awkward and uncomfortable to Hisui but seeing that they were back to their friendly banter, she reluctantly made her presence known.

"Hello Natsu and Happy, I'm sorry for passing out like that. Please forgive me." the princess bowed with dignity and elegance.

"No need for that Hisui, come sit with us. We have things to talk about, we can hunt for food later." Natsu told her and offered her space to sit in.

Hisui accepted his request and found a spot then sat down. She knows that they will be talking about serious matters for a while.

"Natsu, is it about that rabbit guy?" Happy spoke up.

"Yeah, and I can say that he's much, much stronger than I currently am. He could've trashed me easily without using his magic, that was just how skilled he was. Hell, I even daresay he's stronger than Gildarts. He said that his name was God Serena, as I am now, I have zero percent chance of winning against that bastard." Natsu admitted.

"That might be true, Natsu." Hisui joined in. "It is true that Gildarts Clive, Ace of Fairy Tail, also dubbed as Gildarts of the West is the strongest mage in the western part of Ishgar. But the man you faced named God Serena, was the strongest mage in the entire continent before he defected. He was also the former Wizard Saint ranked first, the strongest of the Four Heavenly Kings of Ishgar."

"What?!" Natsu and Happy shouted simultaneously.

Hisui nodded sadly. "And now it seems that he has defected to the Alvarez Empire. It is a vast continent located west of Ishgar. They have tried invading Ishgar years ago but was threatened by Etherion and FACE but now that the super weapons are gone, it seems that they making their move."

Natsu was awfully quiet before Happy spoke up, "Natsu, what magic did he use?"

"Oh that, he uses dragon slayer magic he was a second generation dragon slayer." Natsu answered.

"And fire was also his element?!" Hisui inquired.

"Yes, but not just fire. He claimed that he has eight dragon lacrimas in him. So far he's only shown four of them, they were fire, water, earth and wind." Natsu said but seeing that Happy and Hisui weren't talking anytime soon he continued, "There is also one last thing I heard from him, he said that there was something called the 'Spriggan Twelve' and each one of them are capable of wrecking an entire country."

Happy's expression remained serious but these things always happens at Fairy Tail so he's learned to cope with it a little. Hisui on the other hand, could not begin to form the words that expressed her fears, the enemy they were up against was too dangerous and seeing that they've cut all diplomatic relations, a full-scale war may be inevitable. What will happen to ber beloved country?

Seeing Hisui unresponsive made Natsu concerned, he went to her side and held her hand to offer comfort. She really is devoted to her people.

"Don't worry Hisui, that's what we're doing here, to get stronger. If it comes down to it Fairy Tail will join the fight against the Alvarez Empire. Since you show devotion to the safety of your citizens, we will also give our loyalty to the Kingdom of Fiore." Natsu comforted while stroking her hair gently.

"Aye! I'm with Natsu on this one." Happy added.

"Thank you, both of you." Hisui whispered while sobbing. She was able to express her emotions through tears. After seeing the uncharacteristic side of the dragon slayer, she was able to ease up a bit.

"But Natsu, I'm still worried about Arcadios and the others." she continued to sob while clinging to the warmth his hand offered.

"What happened to them? I kinda forgot to ask." questioned Natsu.

Hisui retold the story of what happened earlier in the day before the duo arrived.

"Do you believe his words?" Natsu asked after hearing Hisui's tale.

"I don't want to, but it's the only thing I can cling on to." Hisui muttered.

"That's alright Hisui, but I wouldn't put all my eggs in one basket. Remember when we were trying to rescue Lucy during the Grand Magic Games? We were competing in the battle royale but at the same time, Mira, Wendy, the exceeds and I were also deployed to break her out of prison." Natsu stated.

Hisui pondered at the dragon slayer's words. There was much she didn't know about him. Apart from from his cluelessness, he can actually be pretty sensible whem he wants to be. Natsu left her in her thoughts since she had a lot of things occupying her mind. Now, she was facing a difficult decision. Watching Natsu having a good laugh with his partner made her smile, she looked at the two's smiling faces fondly. She was able to come up with a decision and approached the duo.

"Natsu, if it isn't to much to ask... it is possible to join you in your journey?" Hisui reluctantly requested. "I've thought about what you said and I also want to know about the enemy's goals as well."

Natsu and Happy were quite shocked at the princess' request. Although she said it reluctantly, she showed a degree of assertiveness in her voice. Seeing the look of Hisui's face, Natsu flashed her his toothy grin.

"Of course you can come we'd love to have you." Natsu cheered.

"Aye, welcome to the team!"

"Thank you for having me." Hisui bowed in gratitude. "But first, tomorrow I will send my father to let him know that I am alive. I would not want him to worry too much."

"Well, now that the depressing talk is over, let's hunt for dinner." Natsu stated, already pulling Hisui with him towards the woods, not even asking her confirmation. Happy immediately followed them afterwards.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: New chapter here. I can say I am liking the emperor's new clothes (talking about Zeref), so badass. If you're a fan of watching FT theories, check out Rai Han's theories on Youtube, they're very good and could be plausible. Read and Review!**

 **DISCLAIMER: HRO MASHIMA OWNS FAIRY TAIL, NOT ME.**

It had been a week since Fiore's king, Toma E. Fiore received news that the assembly had been sabotaged but he still doesn't know much about it. Even the people of Seven didn't know much about the issue. His only guess is that the Alvarez Kingdom may have had a hand on this. But what's even more concerning is that he has yet to hear from Hisui or Arcadios. He already sent for several troops of search parties but all failed to bring news.

Now, we see the king sitting on his throne in the throne room, he had a frown on his face, he has been keeping it for days now. His eyes were bloodshot and weary, most definitely from the lack of sleep. He released a tired yawn when he heard hurried footsteps coming to the throne room.

"Your majesty! Your majesty!" a foot soldier barged in front of him then bowed deeply. "I apologize for my rudeness sir, but this urgent... You have received a letter, my king."

"A letter? From whom?" Toma inquired. He looked at the name of the sender and felt an immense load taken off his chest because the sender of the letter is none other than Hisui E. Fiore.

He could feel tears forming in his eyes, he quickly thanked his subject and told him to let him be. He then shakily opened the letter to check if it was authentic and there was no doubt in his mind that it was Hisui's penmanship. The strokes were neat, graceful and elegant, clearly coming from someone of noble upbringing.

 _Dear Father,_

 _I wish I could have sent you a letter of a more jovial note but it seems I will be causing you more headache. Dark times are ahead of us, but first thing you need to know is that I am safe from harm. I am eating healthy and have been bathing regularly, although my life at the moment may not be as grand as in Mercurius but it is quite comfortable and a nice change of pace. I am currently traveling with Natsu and Happy, once again I owe them my life. What I'm trying to say here is that you don't have to worry for my safety, the three of us will keep each other safe._

 _Second thing you need to know is more serious, your speculations were correct, the Alvarez Empire is making their move._ _What is even more disturbing is that the former Wizard Saint God Serena has sided with the Alvarez Empire. He said that there are twelve mages in the Alvarez Empire on par with God Serena's strength, they are called as the Spriggan Twelve. God Serena's strength is even greater than we gave him credit for. He is a dragon slayer with eight elements and he also almost succeeded in killing Natsu. He was merely toying with him, as his words say. So far he's shown the elements of earth, fire, water and wind. I felt that need to tell you the real nature of his magic since nobody's aware of it, I do not think even the other Wizard Saints knew of his magic. A year from now, they will invade Fiore and burn it down, it seems that the country of Seven and the Pergrande Kingdom have cut ties with us, God Serena said that any country who will ally with Fiore will be wiped out by Alvarez. Their strength must be tremendous for even the Pergrande Kingdom to bend to the Alvarez Empire's wishes.  
_

 _And lastly it is about Arcadios and the Royal Guards, I do not know what happened to them. A mysterious bald man with a skull tattoo on his forehead used his magic and disappeared with them, not a trace, even Natsu's keen nose is not helping. I heard that his name was Jacob, his ability was quite fearsome. I can only assume that he too is a part of the Spriggan Twelve._

 _I will do my best to look for clues about their whereabouts. God Serena said that they were still alive, his words are the only thing I have about their condition. He may have lied to me but still, I will keep looking. And also I will try to find out what their true purpose is, it seems that they are only interested in Fiore after all. I have also been helping Natsu out a bit with his training even if it is only a little. Please do not search for me father, it will only be useless._

 _I will write you a letter every two weeks so that you will know how I am faring. Natsu, Happy and I plan to be back on the final day of the Grand Magic Games next year. I will see you until then, father. Please continue to eat healthy and maintain a balanced lifestyle._

 _Yours truly,_  
 _Hisui E. Fiore_

Toma was felt relieved about Hisui's safety but dreaded the rest of the letter's contents. He was sweating bullets as he read through the letter, this information must be passed to the rest of the Ten Wizard Saints. He couldn't stop thinking about his daughter but the thought of Natsu being with her calmed his soul a bit. He looked for the address where the letter was sent from but found none.

 _'I heard of Fairy Tail's disbandment just a few days ago, I don't think Natsu is even aware of this. I guess their war against Tartaros really did take their toll. But what could be the real reason, the Wizard Saints had not been able to contact Makarov since then. The three remaining Heavenly Kings might know of the enemy's purpose.'_ the short king pondered.

 _'This is one of the times where I wish I was a mage, that way the Magic Council wouldn't be needed. Considering that the last two failed to uphold and maintain peace in Ishgar's magical community. But now that it is spearheaded by the Wizard Saints, there will be changes. Still I will seek some answers, I will demand it if I have to.'_ he continued to reflect.

 _'Please be safe, Hisui, Natsu.'_

-LINE BREAK-

A week ago, Hisui decided to tag along with Natsu and Happy in their journey throughout Ishgar. She was slowly getting used to the duo's daily routines. At first she was uncomfortable at joining the two, especially at night when it was sleeping time. It was the first time she slept with a boy only five feet away from her. But that was not the worst part, the fact that Natsu's snore could be heard through half the forest added to her discomfort. Happy also talked in his sleep, they were mostly about fish and Carla, and he was always drooling. In Mercurius, she fell asleep to the wondrous melody of classical music, now she forced her eyes to shut with the sound of a bellowing beast and the ramblings of a love-struck talking cat pounding her ears.

She could understand how the two must have felt after training from dawn to dusk, so she grew to adapt to the sudden change of things. Hisui also felt that she was carrying the lightest weight among the three of them, so she volunteered to be the cook at the duration of their journey. She wanted to help them even if only for a little bit, sure she has no experience about the outside world but she was very knowledgeable about lots of things.

Observing Natsu's training for a week, she drew two of Natsu's major weaknesses, one was that Natsu is too reliant in his instincts during combat and the second is and will always be motion sickness. Both of these weaknesses could cost Natsu the fight or his life, in order to counter the second weakness she began to brew a cure for that weakness. She's read almost all the books in the palace which was the biggest library you could ever find in Fiore.

All of this was kept a secret from Natsu and Happy because she wanted it to be a surprise. She read a lot of medicinal books from the palace and kept footnotes of them on her diary which she brings wherever she goes. At times, she watches Natsu train for hours but when he starts to get serious and takes his clothes off, that is her cue to leave. By then, the princess would start concocting the cure for her friend or start preparing their food.

There was also something else occupying her mind and that was the ability of the man named, Jacob, the one who took away her companions. Hisui is sure that the man uses space magic but determining what kind is going to be tedious. At first, she just thought it was teleportation magic but if her memory serves right, it didn't look that way to her. While employing teleportation magic, the person or object being teleported would vanish almost instantaneously. The magic she saw Jacob use, he and the others didn't disappear immediately but they started to fade first before they were erased. It was definitely a rare kind of spatial magic, and a formidable one at that.

At the moment the three of them were sitting around in their campfire, waiting for their dinner to be cooked. Hisui had changed her attire since the incident a week ago. Now she was wearing a simple white sundress while tying her hair in ponytail. She also wore a pair of wooden clogs, to those who were not familiar with her, she looked like common folk. When traveling, she would wear a green cloak over her sundress. Her jewelry were also discarded so that she wouldn't attract suspicious individuals.

"Alright, let's eat!" Natsu cheered as their dinner was served. Their dinner was roasted bakshi, they're small reptilian creatures resembling lizards.

Hisui was not sure if she should eat the roasted lizards, she didn't even know if they edible. She just wanted to feed on some berries but her body needed some protein too. Happy's supply of fish had already ran out as well, even the exceed settled for roasted lizards.

"Natsu, are you sure these are edible?" Hisui questioned. She had to ask even though she could already see the two devouring the bakshi with gusto.

Natsu swallowed the food and looked at her, "Of course they are, they're very delicious. Even Lucy came to like them after camping out in the wild during our missions."

"Aye, she ate like a caveman!" Happy joked.

Natsu took a piece from the tail and offered it to her, bringing it close to her mouth. "Here, the tail part contains the most meat. Don't worry about them being filthy and all, these bakshi are herbivores. They don't eat dead things or feed on dirt. If you don't like it I'll hunt you something else."

"You do not need to do that for me, Natsu. I'll still eat it, I'm still getting used living in the wild" Hisui politely replied.

The green-haired girl took the piece of meat from Natsu's hand and chewed on it slowly. She actually didn't want to chew on it and just swallow it immediately but that would be rude and unbecoming of her.

"So how was it? I guess the palace isn't one for exotic cuisine, huh?" Natsu asked after Hisui swallowed her food.

"It was quite good, it has the right tenderness and seasoned perfectly. And you're right about the palace being ignorant about exotic cuisine, I've heard about bakshi before but I had no idea they were edible." Hisui replied. It was the truth, she did find it palatable and wouldn't mind eating some more.

"As for me, I've been eating weird food all my life. From lizardmen to vulcans, Igneel and I always ate what we could find, except for humans. Even though Igneel loved humans he'd never eat them." Natsu proudly said.

"I did not know such things could be eaten" she commented.

"Well, they were hardly edible. They tasted like dung." Natsu responded.

The trio continued their dinner silently until they finished their hearty meal. Natsu was looking at Hisui intently, it wasn't anything with malice instead he was looking at her with intrigue and curiosity. The princess was getting a bit uncomfortable of Natsu's staring.

"You know Hisui, you remind me a lot of Lucy. What do you think, Happy?" Natsu asked his partner while putting on a thoughtful pose.

"Hmmm, now that you look at it, she kinda does." the exceed replied.

"I think it's because you had almost the same upbringing. Both of you came from wealthy families after all. Although, you're not as weird as Lucy and don't complain as much. In fact, you don't complain at all." Natsu stated.

"Aye, you're not as fat or as heavy as her too!" Happy added.

Hisui couln't help but give a small laugh at the duo's words. Both were complimenting her but at the same time, they were bringing down their own guild mate. But she knew that they never meant it in a negative way, even if she heard Natsu fire insults at Gray sometimes, she knew that they were still close friends.

"Thank you for your kind words, both of you. It means a lot to me." Hisui replied.

"No, don't worry about it. But Hisui, don't be afraid to express your opinions to us, we might not listen to it all the time but at least try not to hold your words back on us. You can say whatever you like, I encourage it. We are gonna be journeying for a while after all." Natsu gave a smile to the princess.

Hisui had wide eyes for a moment, then she gave him a smile of her own. "Okay Natsu, I'll try."

Natsu, Hisui and Happy talked until the wee hours of the morning. Hisui learned about Natsu and Happy's pasts, she learned just how strong a person Natsu is and how true he is to himself and everyone. The idiotic duo only asked the princess about the luxuries of the palace since they had no interests about politics. By the time they went to bed, the trio were exhausted that Natsu and Happy had to skip training the next day to rest and relax a bit.

-LINE BREAK-

 **One Month Later:**

Natsu, Happy and Hisui were now in the borders of Seven and Iceberg. Their next destination is Mt. Triton, the highest peak and the coldest place in the whole continent of Ishgar. The past month had been fruitful for Natsu and Happy. Happy is almost certain that his Aera will rise to greater heights and he will be the first exceed to ever do it. He was faster than ever before, his wingspan had gotten a bit wider and could even carry two people for a short amount of time.

Natsu, however was wearing bandages on his right arm but it wasn't because of some injury, it is because of a power that will soon awaken. With constant training Natsu will soon realize that power. His magical reserve had also increased through intense training. He was feeling less strain when using his Lightning Flame Dragon Mode, it was almost natural to him. However, he was still having problems utilizing the black flames. Natsu somehow could not balance the power of god flames and dragon flames, his dragon flames would overpower the god flames most of the time.

 ** _FLASHBACK:_**

 _Natsu was once again, inside his head, his body was asleep at the moment, however his mind was well awake. The dragon-shaped insignia in the form of smoldering flames was still burning lively in the midst of nothingness._

 _ **"Natsu** " the familiar voice called. **"The time is almost upon us."**_

 _"What do you mean, Igneel?" Natsu queried._

 _ **"My dying will, the remnants of my power will start to manifest in you. Remember Natsu, you can only use this once. Use it wisely."** Igneel said._

 _"Huh? I don't understand at all."Natsu shook his head confusingly._

 ** _"The power granted by the dead will end the cursed immortal's life and suffering. You know to whom you will use it, Natsu. But think things through, you can only use this once, there will be no second chances or do overs. I know you will make the right choice, son."_** _Igneel informed._

 _Natsu was about to ask again what Igneel was talking about when a sudden jolt of realization hit his head and things become a bit clearer._

 _'Of course! It has to be him. The cursed immortal. Suffering? Is he suffering? Doesn't seem to be, if he caused all those deaths.' Natsu continuously pondered._

 _"Igneel, tell me about...Zeref." the pinkette requested. "If that bastard had been around for centuries, you must've heard of him a lot back then."_

 _The voice from the flames made a deep sigh, **"Very well, I will tell you Natsu. But only when your training is complete and you have inherited my dying will."**_

 _"Sounds fair, I guess. Okay, it's a deal then. I won't fail you, Igneel." Natsu agreed._

 **END OF FLASHBACK**

The trio had traversed the whole country of Seven in a month by foot. They occasionally stopped by towns to buy their necessities. Sometimes, they also stayed at small inns where they have to share a room with two beds. By this time, Hisui had gotten used to Natsu's loud snoring and Happy's creepy sleep-talking. Happy would sometimes rant in his sleep in which the princess would laugh a bit of how pointless it was.

When they were in small, isolated towns, Natsu would sometimes perform odd jobs that would include capturing bandits or subduing a monster. Any job that would require offensive power, Natsu will definitely do it, whether if it's a job request or not. But in the end, Natsu is charged with a lot of collateral damages that if Hisui hadn't been there shouldering the payment, he and Happy would probably live in the wilds on the rest of their journey. It was Natsu's nature, whatever job he does, he would end up being the bigger menace than the bandits or the beasts ever were. This caused all the sane people to back away from him while all the misfits and the outcasts admired and praised him.

Natsu had once asked Hisui to help translate something. Her extensive knowledge about language and literature had proven to be useful since Natsu almost knew nothing of them. Since then, Hisui would help Natsu when someone requests him to translate something.

 _'If Arcadios had been here, he would reprimand me for hanging out with the wrong crowd.'_ Hisui laughed in her thoughts. _'But for a wrong crowd, they are awfully kind.'_

 _'I hope you are all alright, I will not stop searching for all of you.'_ she added, her thoughts becoming serious at the end.

-LINE BREAK-

The sun had risen and the trio's journey will resume. Iceberg and Seven are separated by a rocky mountain range. Natsu, Hisui and Happy will have to traverse this terrain and once they make it through they'll be surrounded by the frozen tundra of Iceberg. As always, Natsu would lead the trail and Hisui would follow the path Natsu treaded since the rocks they're stepping on could be treacherous.

Natsu's nose suddenly picked something up in the air. He immediately dashed to where the scent is, leaving Happy and Hisui behind.

"Natsu, please wait up!" the princess yelled.

"What's the hurry?" Happy questioned and offered to carry Hisui in order to catch up with Natsu. Happy and Hisui caught up to Natsu and saw him looking down from a rock ledge, he was smiling.

"How's it going, old man?!" Natsu shouted from where he was standing

Looking down to where Natsu was shouting, they saw a cloaked figure walking the opposite direction they were.  
The figure looked up and gave them a confused look.

"Natsu?" the cloaked figure asked, tilting his head.

Natsu grinned and ignited his fists with flames. He charged at the mysterious person. The cloaked figure effortlessly sidestepped and delivered a solid right blow on the dragon slayer's gut. Natsu was sent flying back to where he came from.

Happy, already knowing what's about to happen and the identity of the mystery man quickly carried Hisui up high in order to not get caught in the impact. Natsu crashed into the hard rocks, smashing them upon contact. Natsu wasn't moving for a second in which Happy chuckled but made Hisui a little worried about Natsu's well-being and of the figure who reduced Natsu to such a pitiful state in just one blow.

"Natsu, Happy it's been a while." the the cloaked figure spoke and lifted his hood, showing his face. He appeared to be a middle-aged man with slicked back, light brown hair. He had a towering height and a muscular build, he was none other than Gildarts Clive, Ace of Fairy Tail.

After exchanging pleasantries, they all settled down and caught up with everything going on the past few months. Natsu told Gildarts what happened with their war against Tartaros while Gildarts regaled them with his adventures which they all listened with wide eyes.

"Damn it, why didn't my Cana call for me? I could've done something." the crash mage muttered, wondering why his adorable daughter didn't contact him ever since he left.

"Hmmm, I think she ripped off the card you left her the moment she received it" Happy informed, much to Gildarts' shock and disappointment.

"She really reminds me of Cornelia." Gildarts looked back fondly. "Sorry I couldn't be of help, Natsu." he apologized, knowing that Natsu had the biggest loss of his life during the battle against Tartaros.

"Nah, don't sweat it old man, I'm moving on. And besides, I have a new goal." Natsu declared.

"And what's that?" Gildarts questioned.

"To become strong enough to protect my friends and to one day pulverize Acnologia into dragon dust." Natsu stated quietly but his eyes are brimming with determination. "That's what this journey is for."

Gildarts smiled at Natsu's words and his resolve. He looked at Natsu's companion whose visage was covered well by the green cloak. It was obvious that it was a girl and a beautiful one, he could tell.

"So Natsu, who's your friend?" Gildarts asked, pointing to Hisui.

"I'll let her introduce herself" Natsu answered.

The princess looked at Natsu for a while and gave him a nod. She stood up and revealed her face.

"Greetings, my name is Hisui E. Fiore. It is nice to meet you, Gildarts Clive of Fairy Tail." the Princess of Fiore politely bowed.

Gildarts eyes were wide in surprise, he then gave Natsu a sly grin and ruffled his head. Natsu was struggling under Gildarts' iron grip while Hisui was nervous at the look Gildarts had on his face which meant mischief.

"I could not have asked for a better son, I am so proud of you, Natsu." the crash mage announced while containing the overwhelming sense of pride he was feeling at the moment. "Keep up the good work, Natsu."

The Ace of Fairy Tail looked at Hisui and gave her a playful smirk. "I assure you that with him your happiness will never end. Please take care of him." he added teasingly.

"W-what do you mean by that?!" she stuttered nervously, her cheeks were already colored in rosy hues.

"Exactly what you're thinking," Gildarts replied thoughtfully. "Although, it's kinda ironic that the beautiful princess would fall for the big, scaly dragon instead of the knight in shining armor. Man, I love plot twists! Hahahaha!"

"What are you guys talking about?" the pinkette asked, understanding nothing of their recent conversation.

"It is not something you should concern yourself, Natsu." she frantically waved her hands at the pinkette, hoping he wouldn't get it.

"Okay then." Natsu dumbly replied.

Hisui could feel Happy rolling his tongue and was about to say something before the princess sent the exceed a slight glare that had an almost pleading look in it. Happy chose to withhold his one hit K.O. comments.

"Nothing wrong with that." Gildarts spoke up. "I think 'knights in shining armor' are overrated anyway. A knight who wears an unsullied armor would be shallow and inexperienced. It simply means that he had not seen the horrors men can do to other men, had not smelled the blood of their enemies laced in their swords, had not heard of the sorrowful cries of the victims of war, had not tasted the sweetness of victory nor the bitterness of defeat and had not felt the relief of surviving a war or escaping an enemy."

"Those are very wise words, Mr. Clive. They are bitter but truthful." Hisui commented.

"Hmmm, I give love advices too." the crash mage hummed and looked at her and Natsu who was staring up the sky.

"There is no need to talk about such things." she looked away blushing.

Happy whispered something inaudible to Gildarts' ear which somehow made the the crash mage smirk mischievously.  
"So, you've seen ALL of him, huh?" he asked teasingly. "Things are progressing much faster than I thought."

Hisui, who knew what the ace implied covered her hot cheeks while shaking off the memory of that particular day. Her tongue would not allow words to come out due to the embarrassment she felt. She prayed for someone to free her from her current predicament while the man and the exceed were snickering.

"Gildarts." Natsu stood up and said in a very serious tone. "Fight me."

The Ace of Fairy Tail was taken aback by the dragon slayer's tone. "Care to tell me why, Natsu? The tone you used sounded serious, urgent even."

"One year. God Serena. Invasion. Alvarez Empire."

 **A/N: Not much happened here, I just wanted to let the characters have more interactions and depict how Hisui is coping. I hope I'll find time to write soon.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: New chapter here! Read and Review!**

 **DISCLAIMER: HIRO MASHIMA OWNS FAIRY TAIL, NOT ME.**

Happy and Hisui were with wide eyes when they heard of Natsu's reason in challenging Gildarts. The latter's reaction remained calm and thoughtful. For a moment, they seemed to have forgotten about the inevitable catastrophe that's about to take place on Ishgar.

"I see then, I accept your challenge." Gildarts spoke up.

Natsu and Gildarts walked away from each other, distancing themselves fifty feet apart. Natsu put on a fighting stance while Gildarts remained stoic as a statue. Both fighters put on serious faces with Gildarts waiting for Natsu to make the first move.

"What do you make of this, Happy?" Hisui asked the blue cat.

"Natsu's gonna get his ass handed to him again." Happy replied. "Although, he'll be putting a much better fight this time around."

The air was getting warmer. Natsu was gathering his magical power while never taking his eyes off his opponent. Happy was excited about this fight, he knew Natsu was still nowhere Gildarts level but he really wants to see Natsu's improvement when fighting an opponent stronger than him since he didn't get to watch his fight against God Serena. Hisui was slightly worried at how serious Natsu is since their quarrels with the Alvarez Empire were originally her problems to deal with, but now there is no doubt that Natsu will get caught up even further in this catastrophe.

"I will not hold anything back, Gildarts!" the dragon slayer yelled. **"LIGHTNING FLAME DRAGON MODE!"** Fire and lightning were surging all over Natsu's form.

"Neither will I, Natsu." Gildarts anwered.

In a blink of an eye, Natsu was able to close off the fifty-foot distance and aim his lightning-flame clad right fist. **"LIGHTNING DRAGON'S FIRING HAMMER!"** The powerful blow obliterated the entire surrounding within fifty feet diameter.

When the smoke and dust cleared, Gildarts was seen catching Natsu's fist with his prosthetic arm, and was unscathed. He was wearing a satisfied smirk. "You're much stronger than I remember, Natsu." the ace complimented. "If it had been my other hand, it would probably smell like burnt meat now."

Gildarts retaliated with a solid right hook in which Natsu deflected with his other arm. Realizing that he couldn't free himself from Gildarts' iron grasp, aimed a kick on the crash mage's knee. **"LIGHTNING FLAME DRAGON'S TALONS!"** Natsu ignited his feet and pushed himself upwards using the power of propulsion provided by his feet imbued with fire and lightning.

Gildarts was impressed at how Natsu was able to escape from his grasp. _'I can't believe that I actually have to pay attention to his moves now. You sure have grown, Natsu.'_ the ace thought.

 _'Damn it, I hit the metal limb again.'_ the dragon slayer thought.

"Yeah! Natsu's still standing, he's become much stronger now." Happy cheered.

"You can do it, Natsu!" Hisui encouraged.

Gildarts chuckled at this and decided to have fun. "What a lovely young couple these people are."

"That is not the case!" Hisui shouted while blushing. It was the first time she was openly teased like this, the people in the palace respected her too much to be in idle conversation with her or engage in playful banter.

"Hahahaha, this is hilarious!" Gildarts laughed. "The lovely couple is-" before Gildarts could finish his statement, he was sent a few feet back by a punch powered by fire and lightning.

"Thanks for the words, Hisui. That was the first time I landed a clean hit on this old dude." Natsu said turning to the princess.

Hisui gave a small smile to Natsu's toothy grin. Natsu was caught off guard when the rocky ground he stood on crumbled, leaving him off balance and received a punch on his abdomen. The single punch almost drained all the air from Natsu's lungs. Though he was able to maintain his footing, he was coughing up a small amount of blood.

"A cheap shot for a cheap shot." Gildarts smirked. The ace sported a visible bruise on his right cheek.

 _'Shit, only Gildarts can make me bleed this early'_ the dragon slayer spat in his thoughts. He wiped the small trickle of blood beside his lip and readied his stance once more.

Natsu launched a close combat assault on Gildarts, a series of powered up punches and kicks were thrown at the ace however none of them were able to deal damage. All of Natsu's attacks were either blocked or evaded. Gildarts then sent a powerful karate chop above Natsu's head. The dragon slayer was able to react in time and blocked his strike by crossing his arm. Although Natsu was able to block the attack, the force behind it was too powerful. The pinkette was sent rolling to the dirt but avoided the full brunt of the attack.

Gildarts charged at the downed dragon slayer with a blow sweep. **"LIGHTNING FLAME DRAGON'S TALONS!"** yelled Natsu as he blocked the swift kick. Natsu was able to propel himself away from the crash mage. _'Gildarts is very agile for a man his size. He must be even faster when he still had his original limbs.'_ Natsu thought.

Gildarts lifted a giant boulder more than thrice his size and hurled it towards Natsu. **"DISASSEMBLE!"** the ace yelled and with a wave of his hand, the giant boulder was in hundreds of small pieces.

 **"LIGHTNING FLAME DRAGON'S ROAR!"** Natsu unleashed a torrent of lightning-enhanced flames from his maw. His roar was able to reduce the hundreds of rock pieces to ash but when his attack died down, Gildarts was nowhere to be seen. Natsu looked up and saw Gildarts grinning, he was holding another huge boulder above his head and threw it to Natsu's direction once more.

 **"DISASSEMBLE!"** Gildarts shouted and another barrage of cube-shaped rocks. Natsu prepared to retaliate but was surprised when the rocks encircled him. Letting his guard down for a second was all Gildarts needed to capitalize. **"REASSEMBLE!"**

The rocks all around Natsu started to come together to become one whole boulder again. Before Natsu could even think of a counter move, the rocks were already beginning to crush him. He felt the pain as each piece of rock pounded his skin. Natsu flared even more of his power in order to stop Gildarts' attack.

 **"Burn through!"** the pinkette shouted. The rock pounding and crushing his body started to melt from the abnormal rise of Natsu's temperature. Happy and Hisui were sweating at Natsu's power rise even if they were a good one hundred meters away from both fighters. Gildarts also flared his magic up so he can nullify the effects of Natsu's magic. The ground trembled at the might of both mages' powers. Happy carried Hisui to observe the fight from above without worrying about getting caught in it.

 **"DRAGON SLAYER SECRET ART: CRIMSON LOTUS: LIGHTNING FLAME DRAGON'S FISTS!"** Natsu charged at Gildarts with a barrage of punches. The Ace of Fairy Tail smirked as he easily caught Natsu's assault, he was still in the midst of powering up. Natsu's punches were barely able to singe Gildarts' palms.

In just a heartbeat, Gildarts was able to hold a grip on Natsu's face. The latter's was with wide eyes as his sparring buddy did not only stopped all his attacks but also having a firm grip on his face. "You fought well,Natsu. But this is the end." Gildarts said. **"DISASSEMBLE!"** Gildarts casted the spell that dismantles things on his command.

"Natsu!" Hisui cried, thinking that the ace might have gone overboard.

"Don't worry, Natsu's been hit by that before. It's not meant to kill." Happy informed.

When the dust settled, Gildarts was shocked to see Natsu without a head and still standing. Did he cast the wrong magic? Did he kill Natsu by accident? Nobody in Fairy Tail will be willing to forgive him for his carelessness. As his mind wandered in anxiety, he received a powerful uppercut on his jaw in which he staggered backwards.

Gildarts saw Natsu with a head forming from a fire that burned on his neck. He was shown with a smug grin at the look of horror on the ace's face. It was the second time he landed a clean hit even if Giladarts was caught off guard on both occasions.

"You had me worried for a moment there, Natsu. I had no idea you could do that." Gildarts said in relief. Natsu was showing him a lot of surprises. First, his dual element and now this, Natsu's drive must be so strong for him to improve this much in so little time.

"Just like Laxus could turn his whole body into lightning, I trained to turn my body into fire. I can say I'm about halfway there till I become a master of it." Natsu replied at Gildarts' words. "Your attack should have disassembled my whole body like last time but I tried to contain it which was able to nullify a bit of your spell."

"That's good Natsu, but now it's time to continue." Gildarts stated while crackling his fists.

"I'm even more fired up than ever before!" Natsu yelled in excitement. Even if he was getting beaten up, this was a very good fight to him. He could finally see his improvement against someone as powerful as Gildarts. In the past Natsu always gets knocked out in one blow by the crash mage. Now, Gildarts was actually fighting back, this in itself was already a huge achievement for Natsu to have lasted twenty minutes .

A pair of emerald green eyes was intently observing the fight. There was no doubt that the brown-haired man was significantly stronger than the pink-haired teen she was routing for. As the fight dragged on, she knew that the pinkette's stamina and magical power was draining him.

"Natsu, I know you are an excellent fighter. But Mr. Clive is a better fighter than you in close combat, which is your specialty. Try to catch him off guard with a ranged attack." Hisui suggested only loud enough so that only Natsu will be able to pick it up with his superior hearing.

Natsu chuckled at Hisui's suggestion. It was very 'Hisui' to praise him first before she would disagree with his idea. This was something he observed over the few weeks they were traveling together. She behaved the same way around Happy as well. Natsu looked up at Hisui and nodded at her direction, showing that he acknowledged her suggestion.

The dragon slayer looked at Gildarts and plan to make his move but he suddenly felt uneasy and could feel something loom over him. As soon as he turned around, there was a giant lizard who was able to sneak up on him. The large reptile was easily fifteen meters long adorned with pink scales. It swallowed Natsu whole. The spectators were shocked at what happened.

Wanting to do something, Gildarts was about to crash the whole mountain they were standing on but before he could do that, the lizard who just ate Natsu began to squirm in pain. It was rolling on the rocks in agony, leading Gildarts to think this was Natsu's doing because there was smoke coming out of it. In a few seconds, the lizard was already dead and a man came out of his mouth. Natsu appeared to be unharmed, he was grinning at Gildarts.

"Dinner is served, only needs salt." Natsu boasted.

"Ha, then we better wrap this up then. I'm starving." Gildarts commented.

Gildarts this time, took the initiative to charge on Natsu at full speed. Natsu, who remembered Hisui's words kept his distance and try to find an opening. The ace was relentless on his assault, while his attacks were not hitting, he knew that he was slowly wearing Natsu down.

By the time that Natsu was able to distance himself from Gildarts, he prepared to unleash a breath attack but the old man quickly caught on to his plan. **"EMPYREAN!"** Gildarts shouted and punched the ground so hard that where he was standing on and the giant rock mountain behind Natsu were in pebbles.

 _'This old man is still bat-shit crazy! He could've pulverized me with that. It looks like I have to use my newest move. Sorry Laxus, but this was just way too cool.'_ Natsu shouted in his thoughts as he was in mid air avoiding the impact of Gildarts' attack. Natsu raised his right hand and started to chant, _"Resounding through the air the roar of thunder, Scorching through the earth, the rage of fire, Fall from the heavens and reap destruction, Erupt from the abyss and burn creation!"_ Natsu chanted and brought his hands down. **"BLAZING BOLT!"**

A golden colored magic circle appeared above Gildarts' head and came out a giant ball of lightning. _'This is like Laxus' spell.'_ the old man thought. He raised his hand to block the attack but as soon as he did, he felt and immense heat coming from the ground. A red magic circle appeared from where the ace was standing. _'What the?!'_ he thought. "I've no choice, **ABSOLUTE CRASH!** " Gildarts shouted. Everything around him, whatever it was, was decimated. May it be plants, trees, or rocks, nothing was spared from the force of Gildarts' attack. Natsu's Blazing Bolt spell was obliterated along with everything else.

A series of mountains was slowly forming into a valley, this was the strength of Fairy Tail's Ace, Gildarts Clive. The spectators from above were in shock, fear and awe of the crash mage's power. Happy knew Gildarts was powerful but this was definitely the first time the exceed saw their ace use this much power.

Natsu was having the same reaction, although he should have expected it from the old man. He had to skip from one rock ledge to the other to avoid the debris from burying him alive. As soon as the dust settled down, he saw the old man smiling at him.

"Almost got me there, Natsu." Gildarts said. He was seen with a few bruises from the two punches that were able to connect courtesy of the dragon slayer.

"Fuck you old man, you didn't even give time to gloat." said Natsu while panting.  
His body was full of cuts and bruises. There was a small trickle of blood running down his forehead.

"Sorry Natsu, I didn't know you were trying to impress someone. Hehehehe." Gildarts teased.

"Huh? Impress who?" Natsu tilted his head in confusion.

Gildarts sweatdropped at Natsu's denseness, too bad that the ones who would've understood what he meant couldn't hear them right now. But thinking about what Natsu said before the fight he wanted to talk about a more serious matter.

"You really have become stronger, Natsu. That's very impressive." Gildarts complimented.

"Then fight me with you've got, old man. I can still go, you know." Natsu challenged, still panting.

"Don't get me wrong, I have been serious all this time, Natsu." Gildarts corrected. "As a sparring buddy I have been going all out since the get go. The only thing I was lacking is the killing intent or at least the desire to seriously hurt you. Had I seen you as an enemy, I would've made sure my punches connected."

"What? I don't get it." Natsu scratched his head.

"I will go all out, Natsu. With the intention of killing you. Don't ever let your guard down, not even for a moment." Gildarts warned and his magic power skyrocketed. The air was getting heavy, the level of the energy being radiated was absolutely crushing.

Natsu slightly trembled at Gildarts' change of demeanor, he was looking at him the same way God Serena looked at him a month ago.

"What if I had hurt Happy or Hisui, Natsu? What if I had made them cry? At this moment, see me as your sworn enemy because will see you the same way. Show me the things you'll do to an enemy who made your loved ones suffer. Fight me with all the power in your soul, Natsu Dragneel!" Gildarts shouted.

The dragon slayer was shocked at the crash mage's words, he was dead serious. "I'll show you what I'll do to them." Natsu replied darkly, feeling that he had no choice but to answer Gildarts' challenge. Natsu's magic overheated to insane levels, the Lightning Flame Dragon Mode was gone. It was replaced by a tremendous aura of golden flames but the most surprising feature of Natsu's sudden power up was the appearance of scales on Natsu's arms and below his eyes. His onyx eyes became slitted like a viper and his canine became much more prominent. He had just activated his Dragon Force. Both fighters were glaring at each other for a while.

"Happy, I thought this was just a friendly spar." Hisui said from above. Her voice quivered a bit from the tension being generated.

"Me too." Happy replied, sounding anxious. "But knowing Gildarts, he's probably trying to give Natsu a lesson. I'm quite sure of it, Natsu will learn a lot from him."

"Let us hope so." she replied.

Natsu couldn't be more impressive to Gildarts, he was definitely exponentially stronger than the last time they met. Now that he has attained Dragon Force, this could only be the surface of Natsu's bottomless potential.

"Prepare yourself, Natsu." Gildarts said.

"Let's go!" Natsu shouted.

Both combatants charged at each other with blinding speeds, exchanging blows. They haven't started using their magic yet and were trading bare knuckles and feet. As the combat heated with Gildarts still having the upper hand, he caught Natsu's fist and delivered a massive uppercut. **"EMPYREAN!"** he shouted as Natsu was sent flying above.

The spectators gasped at what the crash mage did to their favorite dragon slayer. For a few seconds, Natsu's whole body was limp and unresponsive. He started to feel his muscles when he was already more than a hundred feet above ground. _'Shit, how did I get here?'_ Natsu shouted in his thoughts as he was high above ground.

"Never mind that, I should use this to capitalize." Natsu said to himself while still feeling the pain on his jaw. He could feel that he was now free falling, so he started to build power throughout his body. **"FIRE DRAGON'S WING ATTACK AND FIRE DRAGON'S SWORD HORN COMBO!"** Natsu declared. The power built up on Natsu's body manifested into a dragon's head and wings in a form of flames. Letting the nature of gravity take its course, his attack is stronger than it should be.

Gildarts merely gave a smirk and dodged the attack at the last second. As soon as he stepped away from Natsu's first strike, the flames on his arms were slammed at him. The ace dispersed the torrent of flames with more effort compared to the last time. And as soon as he saw Natsu, he aimed at his chest using his knee. The dragon slayer was able to block it by crossing his arms but once again he was sent back by the force of the attack.

At the moment, Natsu's defense is higher than Gildarts because of Dragon Force. After all, dragon scales are near impenetrable to magic and that includes Crash Magic. The only problem is that he still has a very long way to actually be able to master Dragon Force. As he was sent back by Gildarts, he managed to not lose his balance.

 **"ROAR OF THE FIRE DRAGON!"** Natsu shouted and a burning deluge of flames was released from his jaws. The roar was so strong that Natsu felt that his soul came out with it. It engulfed the entire battlefield that Gildarts couldn't find any room to evade.

 **"ABSOLUTE CRASH!"** he countered and the heated battle of Fire Dragon Slaying Magic and Crash Magic ensued. As much as the dragon's fire were being split, drops of flames would come at Gildarts' way, only allowing him minimal movement.

Feeling his Dragon Force slowly leaving him, Natsu decided to use one more spell pouring all his magic into it. Knowing that Gildarts' visibility is low due to the flames that were raging all around, he charged at where the ace was standing.

Gildarts was putting his guard up trying to sense where Natsu is. The magic power behind those flames were so strong that he could not detect where the pinkette was. He stood his guard by increasing the bulk of his own magic power. All of a sudden he felt a surge of magic power coming from behind.

 **"DRAGON SLAYER SECRET ART: CRIMSON LOTUS: EXPLODING FLAME BLADE!"** the pinkette shouted as he closed in on Gildarts as he used both his hands to block and defend against the maelstrom of fire.

Both powers battled for a good ten seconds before Gildarts was sent crashing through a boulder several meters backwards. His tough defense finally gave in to the wrathful flames that streamed on Natsu's appendages.

Gildarts grunted at the pain he felt from the attack, it had been a long time since he was at the receiving end and gave in. He was only moderately bruised by the attack because of his defense that took most of the hit. He got back to his feet to look for his opponent. _'Man, that packed quite the punch.'_ he chuckled in his thoughts. The flames slowly died down and now smoke was covering the area. He tried to sense Natsu's magical signature but couldn't pick up any.

When the smoke was finally blown away, Natsu was seen lying on the ground, barely keeping his eyes open. Gildarts saw that Natsu was not moving and hurried to his side. Before he could get there, Happy and Hisui arrived to his side before him.

"Natsu, please be alright." Hisui said worryingly.

"Don't die on us, Natsu!" Happy cried.

"Don't be too dramatic Happy, he's just exhausted." Gildarts chipped in.

Hisui was about to touch his forehead to check on him, but Natsu's hand suddenly had a firm grip on her wrist and his eyes were wide open.

"Hisui! Happy! Hisui! Hisui! Seven minutes, seven minutes and I actually had a slim chance of beating him. I even knocked him off his feet. Too bad none of the guild saw it. Hahahaha." Natsu boasted while barely able to breathe before passing out and was limp as a worm.

The green-haired princess was quite relieved that Natsu was alright. If he had time to brag before passing out, he'll definitely wake to brag about it even more. For a sparring match, that was very intense and too nerve-wracking for her liking. She smiled at the dragon slayer's limp but peaceful form.

"Great effort, Natsu. That was one the best fight I've had in years." Gildarts complimented. "Now, time to prepare dinner." The ace then sought for the giant lizard's corpse buried by the debris

 _'Oh, another peculiar dish.'_ Hisui thought.

-LINE BREAK-

 **Four Hours Later:**

Natsu slowly opened his eyes and could see millions of stars shining in the black sheet of the night. He looked to his side to see a campfire, Happy, Hisui and Gildarts were seen eating in silence. Natsu tried to sit up but was stopped by the pain all over his body, he noticed that most of his midsection were covered in bandages. He groaned at the sensation he felt and made his presence known to the three.

"Oh, you're awake? I expected you to be out cold until tomorrow." Gildarts said in a surprised tone.

"Don't sell me too short, old man." Natsu grunted in pain.

"Natsu, you will benefit more if you rested longer." Hisui suggested.

"Your princess is right, Natsu. Go back to sleep." Gildarts added which earned him a discomforted look from Hisui.

"No, we have to talk about this now." Natsu rebutted before groaning in pain. "Gildarts, you've been around far longer than I have, what do you know about the Alvarez Empire?"

"I'm not that old you know!" the ace shouted indignantly. "But back to your question, one thing I know is that their army is much larger than Ishgar's."

"My father also informed me that." Hisui confirmed. "Is there anything else you know?"

"Well, I guess I could tell you." Gildarts answered and started to retell his tale. "Ten years ago, the Alvarez Empire invaded Caelum. I was one of the capable mages who were sent to battle. When you talk about the Alvarez Empire, you think of their strongest forces, and that's the Spriggan Twelve." seeing that his listeners weren't responding nor interrupting him, he continued.

"As their name suggests, they are comprised of twelve extremely powerful mages, Arakitasia's counterpart to our Ten Wizard Saints. Their ruler is known as Emperor Spriggan, I've never seen his face and don't know what he looks like. During their invasion, only one Spriggan Twelve member and his squad were responsible for almost destroying Caelum. Their military weapons were quite advanced and the strength of that one member was immense. He called himself the Desert King. We fought for a while and when I was about to finish him off, a really old guy with long hair and long beard came to his rescue. I don't know anything about the old fart except for that his magic power was out of this world. Even mine and Master Makarov's magic power would pale in comparison compared to that old timer. He told us something that it wasn't the time for 'Ragnarok' to start. The Desert King was no slouch either but he was fairly young at that time and very cocky, kinda reminds me of a teenage Laxus, except less grumpy and more arrogant. I'm sure he's gotten stronger since then."

Natsu froze for a moment, it was fortunate that they crossed paths with Gildarts today. At least they can be provided with some information about the enemy. Happy lost all his appetite because of Gildarts' story. Hisui on the other hand was even more terrified at the enemy's fighting strength. But this bit of information is important for them to fight on equal grounds with their enemy. The upcoming war was getting more real as each day passes.

"Now, it's my turn to ask you something." Gildarts spoke up. "What does this have to do with God Serena? You are talking about Ishgar's strongest mage, right?"

"Yeah,...well no. At least not anymore." Natsu replied.

"Huh?" Gildarts tilted his head.

"God Serena has defected from the Wizard Saints and Ishgar and has become a part of the Spriggan Twelve." this time Hisui answered.

Gildarts was silent for a while until he spoke, "How did this happen? Damn, the Wizard Saints are supposed to be our strongest forces. Now that their strongest member is out, we definitely have a problem here."

"Have you met him, Gildarts?" Natsu asked.

"No, but I heard he's an elemental mage, a very strong one." the ace replied.

"That's not all he is. He's actually a second generation dragon slayer, just like Laxus. But instead of one dragon lacrima, he has eight inside him." Natsu stated.

For a moment, Gildarts was with wide eyes before nodding in realization. "I see, I should have known that. An elemental mage cannot be that strong unless they are a slayer mage. Elemental magic is pretty common after all."

"Yeah, sorry to break it to you, old man But I think that asshole God Serena might be stronger than you." Natsu said.

"Don't worry Natsu, it's a big world out there. There are people stronger than you. Although I pride myself of being the Ace of Fairy Tail, I stopped caring about being the top of the world a long time ago. My meeting with that monster reminded me bitterly of just how vast the world is." Gildarts replied wisely.

"It is, huh?" Natsu said thoughtfully

The four of them were silent for a while, content of just the nocturnal creatures making their noise throughout their camp.

"Now that you think about it," Gildarts said thoughtfully. "You never told me how me how you two ended up traveling together, did you two elope?"

"What does that mean?" Natsu asked dumbly.

"W-what?! How could you say that?! It is very improper that a man of your eminence and stature to assume things like that! If you are only guessing, then give a clever guess." Hisui chided while keeping her embarrassment and displeasure in check.

"Well, it's a long story but to make it short her companions were abducted by some weird guy who we can only assume is a member of the Spriggan Twelve and now she's tagging along with me. She wants to find out what the enemy's goal is and who am I to stop her. The more the merrier is what I always say and she's really been helpful since then." Natsu answered for her while looking at the princess warmly.

"That's quite the story." Gildarts replied. "I thought she got engaged to an ugly, old prince, then she met the young and handsome Natsu Dragneel in the palace and it was love at first sight. You couldn't keep your hands off of each other and led her to beg you to take her with you and defy the cruel fate that awaited her."

"That's weird story." Natsu deadpanned.

Gildarts could only facepalm at Natsu's reaction while Hisui was desperately hiding her red face from them. She was a bit thankful that their conversation lost its seriousness but miffed that they did it on her expense.

"That's a great story!" Happy chirped, knowing that the atmosphere lost its tenseness. "Gildarts was the ugly, old and perverted prince!"

"Shut it, Happy!" shouted Gildarts indignantly.

"I agree!" Natsu added.

The youngsters were now poking fun at the poor old man. Wanting to end the day on a happy note, Gildarts pulled out a giant gourd of wine from his bag and drank with them. Even Hisui took a sip from her glass from time to time and laughed with them.

 _'That's better, things like this shouldn't wear down the exuberance of youth. If the youngsters are trying this hard, then we're a poor excuse as adults. This should be the problem of the grown ups.'_ Gildarts chuckled in his thoughts and drank the night away with his buddies.

 **A/N: Sorry if the fight was lame I have zero knowledge on any form of martial art and I suck at descriptive writing. I'll try to write as soon as I can.**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: New chapter here! ' _The darkest hate and the deepest love are no more than the width of rice paper.'_ Tell me, is there some truth to this Rurouni Kenshin quote? Man, I really feel bad for Simon now. First, Jellal goes Mr. Steal-Your-Girl on Erza, now he goes Mr. Steal-Your-Imouto on Kagura (even though it was CPR). Well, it sucks to be dead. I'm pretty neutral about Jellal's character but if there is going to be a major death in this war, I want it to be Jellal. He'll finally think that he's repented for his crimes and Kagura was right about saving him and eventually forgiving him. And besides, a lot of characters who lived a violent life never died a peaceful death, but at least he'll be at peace with himself. That's it for now. Read and Review!**

 **DISCLAIMER: HIRO MASHIMA OWNS FAIRY TAIL, NOT ME.**

For days, Natsu and Gildarts have been spending time together like father and son. They drank, ate, and slept like barbarians. Gildarts even advised Natsu on how not to waste too much magic power on one attack which he was slowly getting the hang of. Gildarts' teasing on Hisui has toned down over the last few days but the princess could never let her guard down completely around the crash mage because once he starts making comments about her and Natsu, Happy joins in and makes it even more embarrassing. It was a relief that Natsu was oblivious to it all or it would have made the rest of their journey awkward and embarrassing.

While Hisui was running through her notes, still trying to create a cure for Natsu's motion sickness, Natsu, Gildarts and Happy are currently fishing at the nearby lake. So far, none of them have caught anything significantly palatable. Even with zero catch, Gildarts remained calm while Natsu was getting impatient and threatened to evaporate the entire lake in which Happy immediately agreed to since the exceed was already drooling at the thought of fish.

"Natsu, patience is part of being a man." Gildarts advised.

"Screw patience!" Natsu ranted and created a giant ball of fire. "These fish need to be taught a lesson and be eaten!"

"That's the spirit, Natsu!" Happy cheered.

Before Natsu could reduce the lake dry, his flames were dispersed by Gildarts' Crash Magic and was about to chide his behavior until he noticed something about the dragon slayer. "Natsu, what's with the bandages? I've never seen you take it off. Now that I remember, you even had them when we fought. Is something wrong with it?" the ace queried.

Natsu gave a deep sigh and turned to Gildarts. "Well, I guess I could show you." Natsu answered and unwrapped the bandage that reaches above the elbow. Natsu's arm appeared normal except for a black marking just below the elbow. It had a tribal-like design that looked just like a fish hook. "This is the last of Igneel's power that I will inherit. When I complete my training, the tattoo's shape will be that of a dragon." Natsu explained and immediately wrapped the bandage on his arm again.

"Interesting, what do you plan to do with it, Natsu. If that power came from a dragon, it must be beyond our imaginations?" Gildarts asked thoughtfully.

"Old man, if I tell you, could you keep it a secret from everyone else." Natsu asked back in a serious tone. "Nobody knows of this except me, Happy and Hisui."

"You have my word, Natsu." the ace answered in an equally serious voice.

Natsu gave him a nod before telling him what it's purpose is. Gildarts was dumbfounded at what Natsu told him, not once did he interupt when the dragon slayer was talking. He didn't realize it but he was actually clutching hard on his prosthetic limbs.

 _'Just what in the name of hell is happening right now? An all-out war will happen soon and if we take a look back at the mage wars that happened since ancient times, there was one thing that tied them all, Zeref. The Black Mage's name has always had a part in all those wars. Someone could wage a war just by the possession of one of his many books or the information of his works and teachings. Such is the influence of history's most powerful mage.'_ All of these things were running at Gildarts' thoughts, normally he would never get too worked up about such things but this particular subject opened a deep, old wound of his. _'Centuries ago... Zeref... Acnologia...'_

Natsu too remained quiet after their talk ended. Even if he got a bite on his line, it was only Happy who cared enough to reel in his catch since the exceed was the only one who was more concerned about his stomach at the time. _'But still, I can't understand what Igneel meant by 'his suffering', I guess I'll find out soon enough.'_ he pondered. He purposely left this part out on their conversation since he wasn't sure what to draw out of it. Even he has yet to tell Happy and Hisui about it, Natsu plans to inform them after Igneel tells him the story behind it.

"Natsu." Gildarts broke the silence. "Do you remember our fight a few days ago?  
When I attacked you mercilessly?"

"Yeah, I was familiar with the look you gave me. I received those looks from my enemies many times before, but that was the first time I received it from a comrade. You had me worried by the way." Natsu answered trying to figure out where Gildarts was heading with the conversation.

"Sorry about that, Natsu. I was just trying to show you how brutal this war is going to be. Everyone you meet on the battlefield is an enemy and will seek to kill you." Gildarts explained.

"Don't worry old man, I'm no stranger to this." Natsu assured.

"You're right about that, however the scale in this war is much larger than what you've experienced so far." Gilarts said. "It will not involve dozens of people but thousands, perhaps myriads of soldiers will fight in this war. Many brave fools will fight and die here, I've witnessed the strength of the Alvarez Empire before. The Spriggan Twelve's feats of demolishing countries is quite true. I've seen the Desert King use an attack that swallowed and entire town, killing every citizen."

"I don't know what you're trying to tell me, old man." Natsu tilted his head in confusion.

"In battle, have you ever wanted to kill someone?" Gildarts asked.

"Yeah, I felt it when I fought against Gajeel and Jellal but somehow, I couldn't or wouldn't follow through with it. When I was about to finish off Jellal, I held back some of my power at the last second." Natsu answered thoughtfully. "Fairy Tail has such high regard human life and I don't think I'm ready to carry that burden."

"You're right. Fairy Tail is proud of that rule but even Fairy Tail knows where the line is drawn. I'm not supposed to tell you this but once you become an S-Class mage, all those quests that are ranked SS-Class or higher all require the act of killing. You won't be able to find translation jobs nor searching jobs when it comes to jobs like those. And sometimes it's not just beasts or monsters but humans as well. Of course these quests are approved by the council but when the job is council-approved the reward is also raised substantially, that's why most clients just hand it over to some dark guild."

"So, you're saying you've killed people before?" Natsu asked who didn't know how he should react. But somewhere in his mind, he felt that he knew all along and just ignored the thought. He is the guild's ace after all, the missions he performs are way above than what they've been on.

"Yes. My hands are stained, that's why I try to help as many people as I can and maybe one day, I will be able to forgive myself as I carry the burden of human life with me till the day I die." Gildarts stated looking at Natsu straight in the eye with all the honesty and conviction.

"You're still Gildarts to me, old man." Natsu said also looking at the ace straight in the eye. "But I think we're getting sidetracked here, there's still something you wanted to tell me, I know it."

"Okay. I'll tell you now." Gildarts said. "Natsu, you have aptitude for battle but the one flaw you have is that you simply love it too much. You haven't realized it, but you tend to drag the fight too long,especially if your opponent is at your skill level."

"I always go all-out against my opponents, especially if they've hurt someone I care about." Natsu argued. "Holding back ain't my style."

"I know, but to you, there is something that trumps beating the enemy to a pulp, and that's the joy of a great fight. You harbor ill feelings towards the enemy but at the same time you also fight just for the hell of it. You simply enjoy fighting too much." Gildarts pointed out.

"Is that a bad thing?" the dragon slayer asked.

"Not really. But this is a war we're talking about here, you will need to defeat your enemy or better yet kill them as quickly as possible. A single mistake is all they need to capitalize on you, and the tides of battle could be easily turned. The enemy will also do the same thing, they will try every underhanded trick there is on the book to get ahead of us. One of the many many ways to win a war is deceit because both sides will be greatly affected if the battles are prolonged. That's why I'm telling you to defeat the enemy as quickly as you can, you cannot engage them on a slug fest which will only drag the battle out. I'm telling you this because you will likely face one of the twelve. If what you told me about God Serena is true then he could've killed you easily if he hadn't been so flashy and arrogant." Gildarts said without emotion.

"Okay, at least I understand some things about what you just said." Natsu replied thoughtfully. "You're saying I shouldn't enjoy myself too much, right?"

Gildarts chuckled at Natsu's way of understanding. "That's basically it."

Even if a certain exceed was contently munching the fish he caught, he was also quietly listening on their conversation. _'Don't worry Natsu, I'll be with you through it all.'_ Happy thought

-LINE BREAK-

 **One Week Later:**

It had been over a week since Natsu and Gildarts had crossed paths, now it was time they continue their respective journey. Natsu must continue to train and inherit Igneel's dying will while Gildarts will wander aimlessly throughout Ishgar while helping people and picking up pretty women along the way. The duo had spent a sufficient amount of time with each other over the last week, enough to last a lifetime. Gildarts had taught Natsu everything he could in a week's time and Natsu had told their ace everything about their enemy with the help of Hisui. In the end, the crash mage had to wonder how he remained so oblivious to all this.

"So, where are you headed to Natsu?" Gildarts asked, already dressed up for the road once again.

"Mt. Triton. I need my fire to resist even the coldest environment, I will not lose to Ice Devil Slayer Magic again." Natsu answered. Happy and Hisui were already by his side also prepared to set off.

"Don't worry Natsu, with your passion and drive as strong as it is now, you'll surpass me in no time." the ace complimented.

"That's probably not true but thanks, anyway." Natsu replied with a grin.

"Aye! See you again, Gildarts!" Happy added.

"Thank you Mr. Clive, your company was very much appreciated." Hisui bowed.

"It wasn't anything, really. Just continue to look out for each other." Gildarts replied with a fond smile. "Well, I ain't cut out for goodbyes, but I guess I'll see you when I see you." Gildarts then headed off to the opposite direction.

"Come back to the guild soon, old man!" Natsu shouted at Gildarts' fading form in the distance and received a wave of acknowledgement from the crash mage.

"Well, that's it for now. Let's head off." Natsu stated and his companions nodded in agreement.

-LINE BREAK-

 **Magic Council Headquarters in Era:**

After a month, Tome E. Fiore finally managed to summon and have an audience with three of the highest ranked Wizard Saints, barring God Serena. The diminutive king is currently in Era to see the aforementioned Wizard Saints. At the moment he was escorted through the council halls by the newly appointed Commander of the Enforcement Unit, Gajeel Redfox. A tall, well-built man with many body piercings and black hair that reaches to his back. Along with Gajeel Redfox were his subordinates, a short, blue-haired girl named Levy McGarden and a muscular, bipedal, black cat with a sword on his back named Pantherlily. All of which were former members of the famous guild, Fairy Tail.

"Any reason why you're here, old man?" Gajeel asked.

"Gajeel, show some respect!" Levy chided.

"Oh, don't worry it's quite alright, I'm used to it." the king brushed off. "I'm here to have a talk with the Heavenly Kings."

The former Fairy Tail mages were quite surprised that the Heavenly Kings were gathering, it's true that they often see the Fourth Wizard Saint, Warrod Sequen, who was responsible for reviving the Magic Council with the Ten Wizard Saints as Head Councillors. He was also responsible for giving the three their jobs when their former guild disbanded. But as for the three higher ranked members, the trio had no clue what they looked like, so they were quite hyped to see the most capable mages of the continent.

After a few minutes of walking in silence, they arrived at the room where the meeting was supposed to be held. Toma's escorts were about to leave when he was about to open the door but stopped them from doing so.

"Hold on, you three." Toma spoke. "The reason I specifically asked for you to escort me is because I want you to also attend this meeting."

"Politics ain't my thing" Gajeel rudely declined.

"Be more polite, Gajeel." Levy reprimanded.

"Pardoning my superior's rudeness, is there any reason why we should attend this meeting?" Pantherlily politely asked.

"Yes, something very concerning." Toma replied.

-LINE BREAK-

The trio had continued to trek for hours until they reached the nearest town, the sun was beginning to set and they soon need to find lodgings to spend the night. As they get closer and closer to the country of Iceberg, the temperature around them drop to drastic levels. They plan continue to walk the next day until they reach Mt. Triton which they will arrive in two days.

After booking a room at a humble inn, Hisui went out to buy a new diary and some clothes to compliment the country's climate. Happy went out to accompany her, just in case, leaving Natsu alone at their room. A change of wardrobe was an urgent matter for Hisui because she is not used to extreme weathers such as this and it will only get colder as they get closer to Mt. Triton. As for the diary, she noticed that when she began traveling with Natsu and Happy, she was filling out her diary at a faster pace than ever. At her previous life at the palace, she could barely fill one page of her diary writing the memorable events each day. But since a month ago, a mere three-page chronicle of events isn't enough to satisfy the things she wants to put in her diary.

The princess and the exceed had spent two hours to procure the things they needed. Hisui also bought fish for Happy as gratitude for the exceed's thoughtfulness of escorting her. When they entered their room, Natsu is seen lying on his bed with a magazine on his hand, which was quite shocking to say the least, since the dragon was not much of a reader. In fact, the only things he read were job requests or food menus and nothing else.

"Good evening, Natsu." the princess greeted. "Sorry for the wait." Hisui was now wearing a white furred coat which covers most of her body. Along with her coat are a pair of warm, white gloves. She exchanged her wooden clogs with a pair of black-colored boots. To finish it off she wrapped a long, silky, green scarf around her neck. Needless to say, she felt warm and comfortable with her new outfit.

"Hey Hisui, nice clothes." Natsu returned giving her a brief glance then turning back to his magazine.

The princess gave a small nod at Natsu's words. But seeing how engrossed Natsu is at his magazine, she gave him a quizzical look.

"Natsu's gone mad! He's reading something that's not a meal menu!" Happy cried comically.

"What are you reading, Natsu? I'm just curious." Hisui asked.

"Nothing really. I just found this in my bag an hour ago. The contents kinda remind me of Gray and Lucy. Here, look." Natsu said boredly and tossed the magazine to Hisui. "There's not much to read from it, just pictures."

Hisui promptly caught the magazine in her hands and started turning the pages. She couldn't stop the blood rising to her cheeks when she saw the pictures in the pages. They were all women, posing naked, smiling seductively in provocative positions.

"That girl's boobs is huge!" Happy chimed.

"Yeah, but not nearly as big as Lucy's." Natsu said nonchalantly. "You want it, Hisui? I've seen enough of Gray and Lucy in their birthday suits, it's quite disturbing."

Hisui blushed even more at Natsu's offer and replied, "Where did you get this Natsu?! Please get rid of it! I do not want you reading these things that will corrupt your mind." Her voice this time was more assertive and more imperative than ever.

"Yeah, yeah, you don't have to be a mom about it." Natsu brushed off. "I think Gildarts accidentally put them there, I've been to his place many times before and always see pictures of naked girls in his room.

 _'No, that man purposely did it, he was trying to corrupt Natsu's innocent mind. I should have known he was up to something. Are all the older men in Fairy Tail trying to turn him into one of them? Oh, look how shameless these pictures are!'_ she cringed inwardly. "Please Natsu, it is not a healthy habit to be reading these things."

"Don't worry, they're not that inreresting." Natsu spoke. "But I have something in here that you might be. You like reading don't ya?"

Natsu then handed Hisui a book. From the looks of it, it looked like a novel, but the title alone was enough for Hisui to deduce what genre it belonged to. The book was entitled _'Naughty Nights at the Palace.'_ The front cover of the book were red rose petals and two legs intertwined with each other, one from a man and the other from a woman. The princess skimmed through the pages to confirm her guess and indeed she was very correct. In almost every page, she could read the words 'kiss', 'moan' and 'grope', words that involved physical contact. She's read a lot of books before and some them have scenes that were considered as inappropriate or indecent, but she has never read nor planned to read a book that was pure erotica. The thought of such thing drained all the blood in her body and went up to her face.

Hisui immeadiately handed back the book to Natsu while desperately trying to calm the raging blush on her face. This was definitely Gildarts' doing. "Please get rid of it as well!" she yelled pleadingly.

"Sorry Hisui but I can't do that." Natsu said, smiling. "This will be a great gift to give to Levy or Erza, they love to read as well."

"Aye. Levy, Lucy and Erza are closet pervs!" Happy spilled.

The princess gave a deep sigh and proceeded to go to the bathroom to change into her sleeping attire, she was too tired too deal with their antics tonight. After coming out, she lied on her bed and closed her eyes.

"Hey! You can't sleep yet, the sun just set. I haven't had dinner yet and let's talk some more!" Natsu protested.

"Sorry Natsu, but all that walking really drained me. I will sleep early tonight." Hisui replied.

"Oh come on Hisui, we rarely even talked when Gildarts was around. You were acting really weird." Natsu pointed out.

It was true, when the crash mage was around, she would avoid talking to Natsu too much, for fear of Gildarts' teasing. She liked the ace's company, he was strong and wise, she just wished he could act normally and not tease her whenever he gets a chance. It was rather obvious, so even Natsu easily picked up on it. But today she really was feeling exhausted and really needed a good rest.

"Maybe tomorrow, Natsu. I am beat for today." she politely declined.

"That's it, Happy! We're gonna annoy her all night until she kicks us out!" Natsu declared.

"Aye!" the exceed beamed.

The idiotic duo crawled to her bed, Natsu was jumping up and down to annoy her while Happy whispered to her ear, "I think he liiiikes you!"

Hisui just gave a long, tired sigh. _'Not this again.'_ It was going to be a long night.

-LINE BREAK-

 **A Few Hours Earlier:**

Toma had just finished retelling the contents of Hisui's letter to the highest ranked Wizard Saints. The three Heavenly Kings who were present in the room were Warron Sequen, ranked fourth, Wolfheim, ranked third and Draculos Hyperion, ranked second. Warrod Sequen is a very old man whose facial features greatly resemble a tree trunk. His hair also looks like a green, leafy tree top. He was wearing a green-colored kimono with a pair of black boots. Wolfheim was a very short old man, only about an inch taller than Toma, he was wearing a light-colored vest over his dark-colored shirt. His pants were patterned with diamonds and wore eyeglasses and was sporting a long beard. Draculos Hyperion was an older-looking gentleman sporting a mustache. He wore a light-colored vest with a bowtie, a cape on his back and a ring on his middle finger.

The six people listening to the king's words were in the state of disbelief. To think that the Alvarez Empire would make their move this early, they must have been preparing for this war all along. There were too many things unknown about the continent of Arakitasia, despite the Magic Council's authority that stretches all over Earthland, the western continent had always lived by its own rules. And to top it all off, the Wizard Saints' strongest member has defected to the enemy. However, there was one thing that was not as surprising as it should have been and that is the fact that Fairy Tail is caught in the middle once again. At least, one member that is, and that member is none other than Natsu Dragneel.

"I guess I couldn't arrest Salamander for causing trouble, huh?" Gajeel put on a thinking pose. "Well, I guess I could still arrest him for having a face like that. And I wonder how the princess will look like after one year with Salamander's stupidity, she'll look like an ape by then. Gihihihi." he concluded.

Levy and Pantherlily glared at the dragon slayer for his words. He may not look like it, but sometimes Gajeel took his job way too seriously and just revels at the power and authority being given to him. His comments about the princess were not appreciated either.

"Jokes aside though, I can't believe Natsu actually fought and almost died at the hands of God Serena." Levy shivered at her words.

"Well, it's in his nature to always get in trouble, so I'm not surprised" Pantherlily commented.

The king of Fiore remembered what his purpose was for coming here"I have one thing I ask and please tell me the truth." Toma spoke with all the seriousness. "Do you know of the enemy's goals? You must tell me, it's for Ishgar's sake."

As soon as Toma asked the question he was looked upon coldly by Hyperion and Wolfheim while Warrod gave him a look of empathy. The rest of the room shivered at the way the two highest ranked Wizard Saints were glaring at the king. Their intense glare meant as if the king had no right to be in the room with them. Toma perspired at the intensity of their glare, he felt powerless at the presence of the continent's strongest mages.

"As much as we appreciate the information you have given us, we cannot bring ourselves to put our trust in you, Toma E. Fiore." Hyperion coldly spoke, still fixing his gaze on the undersized king.

"Huh, but why? People's lives are at stake here." Toma pleaded, still sweating.

"We simply could not trust someone who has been delving into the dark arts, especially if that someone happens to be the ruler of a country. Even more so that it was one of Zeref's works you were meddling with." Wolfheim seethed behind his words.

The king's eyes were wide in shock and fear, it's true that the Royal Family did stick their noses unto the dark arts, one prime example is the Eclipse Project. The Eclipse Gate was the door to the past and the future and it is one of the infamous creations of the legendary dark mage, Zeref. The Eclipse Gate had been a long time secret between the Royal Family and the Heartfilia Family. How long? he didn't know, all documentations about the history of the Eclipse Gate had mysteriously vanished in the year X777. But he was curious of how the Wizard Saints knew of this since one council member was gracious enough to erase the memories of the civilians and the council members that day.

"You may have fooled the citizens of Fiore but you cannot deceive the Heavenly Kings." Hyperion spoke as if he read his mind.

"If this imminent war had not come up, we would have definitely persecuted the Royal Family by now." Wolfheim stated with an authoritative tone.

The former members of Fairy Tail were quite reluctant to act because of the position and authority held by the people around the room. Levy, especially wanted to vouch for the king because with the help of everyone, they managed to save Fiore from the dragons of the past and a crazed man from the future. They were able to defeat the invincible thing called fate. It showed that they can overcome all odds as long as they trust one another. But sadly, she could not speak of such things at the moment simply because they were their superiors and she didn't have enough guts. Oh, how she wished Natsu was here, he would have definitely given his two cents and a knuckle sandwich about it.

Toma had never been so nervous in his life. As king, he had not much things to be nervous about. The last time he felt such thing was when the dragons wreaked havoc in Crocus. But he was a just ruler and he truly did care about the welfare of his people, this was certainly a very difficult choice but ultimately the safety of Fiore's citizens must be the top priority and he too must answer for his crimes, after all even the king is not above the law that governs the land.

"Very well, then. I will accept a fair trial after this war is over." Toma bowed lowly.

"You do know that your daughter, Princess Hisui will be facing the same punishment as you, don't you? After all she was the supposed mastermind of the Eclipse Project." Hyperion warned.

The king immediately began to rethink his decision, he could not allow Hisui into this mess. She was already occupied with so much things in her mind right now, the disappearance of her companions, obtaining information, keeping up with Natsu and now this, this was too much for him to put on his daughter's shoulders. If Hisui had been here she would accept her punishment in a flash but even Toma could not decide for Hisui. In all their life as father and daughter he has never made the decision for his daughter. This was an even more difficult decision to make than the first one. He wondered if this was the price to pay for looking into forbidden magic where it should be left untouched.

"Hold on." Warrod suddenly spoke up. He had remained silent the entire conversation. He wasn't even in the mood to crack his jokes. "If the king will be persecuted for associating himself with the dark arts, then I should be receiving the same punishment as well."

"Huh?" Wolfheim gave him a confused look. "I hope this isn't one of your lame jokes, Warrod." his tone getting serious at the end.

"I wish it was." Warrod smiled sadly. He raised his hand and suddenly flowers grew and bloomed from the floor, within the cracks of the wall, outside the window, even from his palms sprouted a beautiful flower.

Knowing that the tree man is a pacifist and would rather avoid a fight, the room's occupants were more stunned than afraid of Warrod's magic power skyrocketing. The former members of Fairy Tail realized that even if their senior isn't much of a fighter as his words say, he was still one of the Heavenly Kings and his magic power were leagues above their own.

"What's the meaning of this, Warrod?!" Wolfheim angrily questioned. He hated that Warrod would always beat around the bush when asked about something. Seeing his display of power infuriated him even more.

"It was Zeref..." Warrod spoke and trailed off which earned him a look of shock and confusion from his audience. "More than a century ago, I had met Zeref myself... No, that's not it... Mavis, Precht, Yurey and myself had met and got acquainted with the Black Mage himself."

The whole room was filled with uneasiness as Warrod began to tell his story. Hyperion and Wolfheim seemed to have calmed down and just waited for the tree man to continue his tale.

"He wasn't just a mere acquaintance, he was actually our teacher... Yes, that's right... It was he, who taught Mavis, Precht, Yurey and myself how to use magic. Of course, none of us knew of his identity back then." Warrod reminisced.

Hyperion and Wolfheim remained thoughtful for a moment and closed their eyes, they had heard rumors about it and only waited for Warrod's confirmation. The others had yet to close their wide-open jaws at the sudden revelation of their former guild's somewhat dark beginnings.

"I know you already get what I'm trying to say, but I'll say it anyway." Warrod continued. "If the king should be punished for his involvement in dark magic, one Zeref's creations, don't you think I should be given the same punishment as well? I am one of his students after all, I learned from the man fifty feet away from me for fear of accidentally killing us. If it hadn't been for that fateful day, Fairy Tail would never have been born and somehow I cannot live with that, no the entire magical community cannot live with that."

The room stayed silent for a few minutes, none of them dared to break the silence. Warrod's story gave the Wizard Saints a lot of things to think about. Even if the tree man was joking most of the time, there was no trace of humor or mischief found in his words as he told his story. Hyperion suddenly stood up and looked at Warrod in the eye, he gave him a small nod and walked towards the door. Wolfheim soon followed him.

"There are still more pressing matters ahead of us, we will settle this some other time." Hyperion said as he stopped before the door and left.

Gajeel, Levy and Pantherlily had managed to relax after the tension in the atmosphere had left.

"To think Fairy Tail had such a history like that..." Levy mumbled.

"Gihi, the guild's got a screw lose even from the founding members." Gajeel snickered.

Warrod smiled at three new recruits, even if it had been more than a century ago, one thing hasn't changed and that was Fairy Tail itself.

"Gajeel, Levy, Lily, you are relieved for today. I'll be the one to escort the king out. You three are free to go." Warrod said calmly.

"It wasn't a joke right?" Gajeel asked knowing that Warrod loved to poke fun at them.

"No, it wasn't." he replied.

The new recruits gave a polite bow and took their leave silently.

After taking their leave, Warrod looked at Toma with a curious gaze while the king stayed silent.

"Well that was a pleasant ending, don't you think?" Warrod asked jokingly.

The king bowed deeply at the Wizard Saint who spoke for him, "I thank you from the very bottom of my heart, Saint Warrod. I don't think I could put more burden on my daughter's shoulders."

"Hmmm... she's with Natsu right?" Warrod asked. "They'll get married when they return."

Toma froze at the tree man's words, Hisui was at the age where he'd allow suitors to court her.

"It was a joke, a joke." Warrod laughed at seeing the diminutive king's stunned face.

Toma softened his expression. "Even if it was, it will be her choice in the end of who she would like to spend the rest of her life with."

"I see, she'll be alright." Warrod replied.

Observing that Warrod was much friendlier than his colleagues, Toma wanted to ask the tree man what the other two wouldn't answer.

"Sorry for asking, but could you tell me about the Alvarez Empire's goals?" Toma asked pleadingly.

"I'm sorry but even I cannot tell you that." Warrod replied sadly. "Although I have no trust issues with you, Wolfheim and Hyperion are higher ranked than me and thus, I answer to them."

"I see, it can't be helped then." Toma hung his head. "But still, my gratitude runs deep, Saint Warrod."

Seeing the king's downtrodden expression, Warrod decided to let him in on something. "There is something I can tell you though." Warrod began and immediately saw the king's quick reaction. "There is still a chance for this war to be prevented. As of now, Makarov Dreyar is on Arakitasia to negotiate with Alvarez' emperor. We already thought far ahead of this imminent war and it is much better to prevent it. We are trying to rebuild our relations with them, that way no bloodshed is needed."

"I-is that so?" the king stuttered.

"Yes. If I hear little Makarov has failed, although I hope I won't. I will inform you of their possible goals." Warrod assured.

"I see, I cannot thank all of you enough. I'm truly in Fairy Tail's debt." Toma bowed once again, feeling a little hopeful. _'I hope everything goes well.'_

 **A/N: I wasn't entirely happy with this chapter, I'll try to do better next time.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: New chapter here! If Acnologia hadn't interfered, Fairy Tail would have been in smithereens by now. And if God Serena, Jacob and August were able to reach the guild, there wouldn't be anyone capable of stopping them. If Jacob and God Serena worked together, Stealth and various Dragon Slayer Magic, they'd almost be invincible... Anyways, I think an August VS. Mavis fight is about to breakout, I mean who else is capable of stopping August right now? This week's chapter was pretty vague and as much as I love Erza,I hope she stays down for this fight, she's done a lot already. We might even get to know her true ancestry after this. I really hope Kagura lands the final blow on Neinhart, it would really be great for her, but seeing Jellal's face and next week's chapter's title, I don't think it will happen because the last time Jellal made that face, somebody died.**

 **DISCLAIMER: HIRO MASHIMA OWNS FAIRY TAIL, NOT ME.**

 **Three Months Later:**

 **"DRAGON GOD'S BRILLIANT FLAME!"** Natsu shouted and aimed a giant ball of golden and black flames to a blizzardvern. Blizzardverns are a sub species of wyverns who are known as the closest living relative of their much stronger cousins, the dragons. Like dragons and wyverns, blizzardverns are large, scaly, winged reptiles. They all thrive in cold climates and are much more feral compared to dragons.

With Natsu's attack, the Blizzardvern is unconscious with several burns on its scales and some were missing. It was still alive, which Natsu was glad for since it was supposedly a friendly fight.

For the past three months, the trio had been living at the summit of Mt. Triton, the coldest place in Ishgar. It was so cold in there that it could have made Mt. Hakobe look like springtime. The three months of training had been good to them. Happy has finally taken his Aera Magic to its next level, he chose to call it Super Aera. The cold, harsh winds of the snowstorm that was always present helped Happy to adapt flying at such high altitude. The exceed was quite proud of his accomplishment but he still has more ways to improve.

Natsu's training had also gone well, his flames were no longer bothered by even the coldest environment. He was finally able to use the black flames efficiently and only needs more polishing. The sad part is that he realized that he could not combine Lightning Dragon Slayer Magic and Flame God Slayer Magic with his Fire Dragon Slayer Magic at the same time. He must use the supplementary magic separately. His Flame Dragon God Mode is more destructive and damaging than his Lightning Flame Dragon Mode but the latter is more precise than the former and the added paralysis effect is very useful. When Natsu looked at his right arm, he saw that the dragon's feet had started to form. He still talked to Igneel in his sleep which he was very thankful for but he knew that when his training is done Igneel will disappear from him again and he was not looking forward to that.

The frigid climate had greatly hindered Hisui's progress in creating the cure to Natsu's motion sickness but she was glad that they could finally leave the cold, almost inhabitable mountain. She noticed that her skin had gotten much paler than before and almost as white as the snow. She stayed inside the cave most of the time since the cold weather and the strong winds could easily blow her away or freeze her to death. It was boring during the daytime since Natsu and Happy were out training but when they were done the idiotic duo would regale her with how their day was spent which she was happy about.

After three long months of rigid training and total isolation from civilization, Natsu, Happy and Hisui are finally on their way down the mountain which the latter was very thankful about. Mt. Triton is a dangerous place after all. Going down the mountain proved to be more difficult than climbing up but with Happy beside her she's going to be fine and Natsu's navigational skills are not something to look down on. The foot of the mountain is nothing but frozen tundra. The nearest town is a few miles ahead and that's where their next destination will be.

-LINE BREAK-

The trio had been trekking for several hours and it would seem that they finally reached civilization. The town's name was Lupus. It was small, not much appeal to it, pretty much everything in the country of Iceberg was unattractive. The country's unforgiving environment had been the very cause of that. Small houses and a few stores and bakeries filled the town of Lupus. When Natsu looked at their local delicacies, his stomach immediately churned in disgust. Adapting to the cold environment, people learned to love frozen delights and sometimes raw and rotten meat was on their menu which was definitely against Natsu and Hisui's liking.

"Don't people in this town know what real food tastes like?!" the dragon slayer ranted in the middle of the street.

"Natsu, you have to respect their ways and lifestyle." Hisui lightly chided since people around them gave off unpleasant looks.

"No, they need to know how. food tastes like!" he argued. "You agree with me, right Happy?"

"I don't really care if it's raw or rotten as long as it's fish." Happy replied nonchalantly.

"Let's just cook them once we find an inn." Natsu gave a deep sigh.

They continued to search through town and bought food for their stay. They planned on staying for a few days since they are yet to decide where they'll go next. After a few hours of searching, they settled at an inn to occupy for the next few days. It was not surprising that they were the only lodgers the inn has since the town's tourist rate is very low. It was even a miracle the town had an inn in the first place. After tidying things up, Hisui went to prepare dinner for three.

While waiting for their dinner to be ready, they engaged in casual conversation like they always do when they're not busy. Happy and Natsu would argue sometimes and would sometimes make fun of each other in which the princess would always find it amusing.

"You know Hisui, I could just give you this book if you want it so much." Natsu offered the book left by Gildarts. Natsu was rummaging through his backpack after his bickering session with Happy, he suddenly found Gildarts' book and decided to give it to Hisui instead since she likes it so much.

The princess blushed a little at Natsu's offer because in his hands, was the smutty book Gildarts left. "I-I do not want it, Natsu. Besides, you said you would give it as a gift to Erza or Levy." Hisui stuttered in her reply. She tried to sound as normal as possible but couldn't quite do it.

"Then why does it have your scent all over it?" Natsu retorted. He proceeded to sniff the book from cover to cover. "By the smell of it, it seems that you're halfway there."

Hisui then blushed scarlet red, it was true, over the past few months she had been keeping a secret from Natsu and Happy and that secret was her reading of that particular book. Sometimes, she got so bored that she would secretly rummage through Natsu's junk of a backpack to read a few chapters of 'Naughty Nights at the Palace'. She was always left very flustered when she would put down the book, due to its illicit content. Hisui constantly reprimanded herself for her unbecoming behavior whenever she picked up the book. But just like every normal person her age, she too has a rebellious nature.

"No wonder my backpack started having your scent on it about a month ago." Natsu said particularly to no one while grooming an imaginary beard.

This was another embarrassing moment for Hisui, even though Natsu was clueless, Happy definitely understood everything and was already rolling his tongue, giving a sly look.

"Oohhh, is the princess becoming a major perv?" the exceed teasingly said.

Hisui frantically waved her hands in denial, her cheeks were still colored scarlet. She tried to come up with decent excuses but she couldn't think of anything. "I think I'm going for a stroll! S-such a lovely night! G-go on and eat dinner without me!" she finally squeaked and quickly headed to the door and went out.

She was gone before Natsu could even protest. "That was weird... I hope we didn't offend her or anything." Natsu cluelessly muttered.

"Oh, Natsu." Happy sighed.

-LINE BREAK-

It had been half an hour since Hisui left the inn, she kept walking aimlessly through the alleys trying to shake off the recent conversation out of her head. At first, she felt humiliated that Natsu and Happy found out about her secret hobby but now that her head is a bit clearer, she chastised herself for being so silly and walking out like that. They were totally in a strange land so anything could happen and it would be better if they stuck together. Another snowstorm is fast approaching and the winds are starting to pick up. It will be difficult to walk and and to see in the middle of a snowstorm so the princess decided to finally head back.

 _'I should never have left the inn. I will get caught in the snowstorm if I do not quicken my steps. I will not make them worry. At least I know the way back to the inn.'_ Hisui regretted in her thoughts and continued walking.

As the green-haired princess trudged through the snow-covered roads, she could lightly see a silhouette of a person. The winds were getting stronger by the minute and each time it does, reduced her visibility. It was a small silhouette, but she was sure that it was a human. Although she was in a hurry and it was against her personal discretion, she walked closer to the figure only to find out that it was an old woman.

The old woman was very short, just like her father. Her gray hair was tied in a bun, she carried a cane on her right hand. Her left hand was pulling a big sack. That sack had hindered the woman greatly while trudging through the snowstom since she seemed to take even smaller steps than her small feet should have allowed her.

"Good evening, ma'am. May I help you with that?" the princess politely offered since the old woman seemed to be having a hard time.

"Oh, thank you dear. It sure is nice to have such helpful youngsters these days" the old lady happily accepted.

Hisui was a bit surprised that the wrinkly, old lady had the voice of a very young woman. The voice sounded wise and kind to her ears. She decided to brush it off and replied, "I am glad to help. But if you do not mind my prying, why are you in the cold like this?"

"Oh I simply got lost in my daydream, I forgot I didn't have any firewood left, silly me." the old woman chuckled.

"But does not the cold bother you?" Hisui questioned since the old woman's clothes seemed to be much less resistant to cold compared to hers.

"At first I detested the cold, but now I love it. I embrace it, it reminds me of my beloved mother." the old woman reflected, having a fond smile on her lips which Hisui could see through even with the strong winds. "We're close to my house now, just one turn away."

"Let us hurry, then."

-LINE BREAK-

Natsu and Happy had already eaten and contented themselves while waiting for Hisui. The dragon slayer kept looking through the window to look for her. A snowstorm is also well on its way through town.

"Man, it's been an hour and still no sign of Hisui." Natsu muttered while looking through the window. "We should look for her, Happy."

"Aye, the winds are getting stronger. It would be impossible for her to get back if the snowstorm reaches its peak." Happy answered.

The idiotic duo went outside to search for their green-haired companion but so far, no signs of her. It was also worrying that there was currently no other person that could be seen nearby. Only the sound of the raging winds could be heard and it blew to almost any direction. The wind's behavior gave Natsu a hard time picking up Hisui's scent.

"Damn it, the stupid wind is messing up my sense of smell... Such a nice night my ass!" Natsu said in an irritated tone. "Any luck from above, Happy?"

"No, I could hardly see a thing."

"Drastic times calls for drastic measures." Natsu said, grinning. "ROAR OF THE FIRE DRAGON!" Natsu aimed his breath attack upwards to create a pillar of flames in the sky. The flames were strong enough to break through the winds and the sky was lit up with a golden glow for a moment.

"Great thinking, Natsu. That was very much like you." Happy sweatdropped at his partner's actions.

In the short time the snowstorm was eliminated, Natsu picked up Hisui's scent but there was also something else he sniffed. "No time to lose, Happy. It's the old creep again." the dragon slayer darted off.

The exceed could only follow his best friend who ran through the alleys of the town. Natsu ran through the streets with almost zero visibility for average humans but the dragon slayer had never been average. After a few turns, they stopped a small hut. There was glowing candle light inside, so someone was definitely home. Natsu was a little relieved at finally finding the place and the only way to announce his welcome was to break the door off its hinges.

"Good evening!" Natsu shouted with Happy behind him. The door broke off of its hinges with a swift kick from the pinkette.

Inside the small hut was Hisui and the old woman she met earlier. As an act of gratitude, the old woman offered a cup of tea to the kind young lady who helped her. Hisui accepted the offer since the poor, old lady lived alone and she wanted to accompany her for a bit. They had yet to properly introduce themselves but was interrupted when the door broke down.

Hisui tensed a little when the door broke down but seeing that it was her pink-haired companion with his talking cat, she gave a relieved smile. "Good evening to you as well, Natsu and Happy."

The dragon slayer's jaw dropped when he noticed Hisui's companion. It was an old lady but he was sure that the scent was the same. The old lady also had a similar reaction seeing the pink-haired idiot. Her eyes were wide in surprise at how they managed to cross paths again.

"First an old geezer, then a young woman and now an old hag." Natsu said obviously confused. "Which was the real one?"

The old woman chuckled at Natsu's question. "Always the funny one, aren't you, Natsu Dragneel?" she softly said.

"Whoa! Her voice is that of a-" Happy muttered.

"Young woman." Natsu finished. He touched the old lady's face, poked her wrinkles and stretched her cheeks. "So weird... I never really remembered your name properly, I'm sure it wasn't Zalty... It was somewhere along Tea Milk Sandwich."

The old woman was having a displeasured look at Natsu's doing so Hisui had to detach the dragon slayer away."Natsu, we are going to have a talk about your conduct." Hisui chided lightly.

When the sting of her cheeks were gone, the old lady smiled calmly. "It's Ultear Milkovich, but for your convenience, you may call me Ul."

"Well, that's much easier to remember." Natsu smiled. "Hey Hisui, let's stay here for awhile. It's been three months since we met someone from our pasts. It'll be good to have someone else to talk to."

-LINE BREAK-

The clock was already at midnight and the three people and the exceed inside the small hut were still wide awake. They had talked about their respective journeys, at times they laughed, and at times they frowned. Ultear and Hisui finally got introduced to each other properly and needless to say, Ultear was flabbergasted that it was actually the princess of Fiore in the flesh, but she did have her suspicions at first glance since the hair and mannerisms were very familiar. On the other hand, Hisui also had the same reaction upon knowing that Ultear was an ex-dark mage and also a former member of the independent guild, Crime Sorciere.

"So that's what happened, huh?" Ultear rhetorically asked after learning the events of Tartaros.

"Pretty much." Natsu answered. "Hmmm, now that I think about it, what are you doing here? This town is for old people, and you're not that old, right?"

Ultear chuckled a bit, "Well to answer your question, I am a native of Iceberg. My mother Ul Milkovich, was once hailed as the strongest mage in this country. This frozen land reminds me of what little memory I have of my mother and I wanted to spend my remaining days with it."

"She's Gray and Lyon's teacher right?" Happy asked.

"Yeah." Natsu answered. "Hey, I heard that Jellal and the pink-haired girl, who claims to be your daughter were looking for you after the Eclipse incident."

"Oh, don't worry, I already took care of that." Ultear answered.

"Hmmm," Natsu frowned. "I don't think living alone out here is such a good idea."

Ultear looked at Natsu and also frowned at his words. "You know, I'm still a dark mage, Natsu. I'll be hunted down immediately if word gets out of who I truly am."

"Haha, don't worry. My girl, Hisui will take care of that once the deal with Alvarez is over." Natsu stated and put an arm around Hisui. Although Natsu's extra warmth felt comfortable, Hisui had to reluctantly disengage herself from the dragon slayer because Ultear was looking at them as if they were a couple. The old lady clearly noticed the tinge of pink on her cheeks.

"You say that as if the Alvarez Kingdom could be handily defeated." Ultear said in a serious tone. "They are going to be our fiercest of aggregations."

"Hey, how can we win if we don't hope or aim for victory?" Natsu replied in an equally serious tone.

"And besides," Natsu continued, his tone much softer this time. "You could at least be there for Gray... It's true that the stripper god is over-the-top annoying but he's a friend too. He already lost his parents and master to Deliora, he lost his father again during the war with Tartaros. He also lost his master's daughter by sacrificing her life so he could live. The stripper may not show it but sometimes, the smile he gives are bitter ones. Sure he's got Juvia, but I don't think he knows that. You are the only one left who could connect with him at a deep level in which not even Juvia's craziness could fathom. And I'm sure your former guild mates at Crime Sorciere feel the same way. Besides, Magnolia is much more accessible compared to this place where nothing grows."

Ultear Milkovich was taken aback at the sincerity of Natsu's words. She could almost feel herself tear up at his words. After all, Gray was the one who opened her eyes to admit to herself that she never truly detested her mother. She loved her deeply all along and she felt loved that she was named after her mother's tears.

"I agree with Natsu on this. This is one of the rare times he uses his head." Happy said, earning a tick mark to appear on the dragon slayer's forehead.

"I may not know you all that well, ma'am, but I too, agree with Natsu's words." Hisui added.

"Please, call me Ultear. I'm not that old, you know." Ultear said while trying to wipe the tears from her eyes.

"...I'll think about it, Natsu." Ultear said after a moment of silence. "But for now, spend the night here. It's already dawn." she continued as she looked at the time.

-LINE BREAK-

It was now early morning in the town of Lupus. Just like every peaceful town, a lot of people tend to wake up early in order to find work. The snowstorm had passed and the town's normal cold, breezy weather greeted them in the morning. Even if the roads were still layered with a foot of snow, it did not stop the citizens to go to work and earn a living. But there was something in the air that was about to stir up the peace.

 **"FLAME GOD'S BELLOW!"** a spiky-haired blond man shouted and a stream of black flames came out of his mouth and hit an unopened store. The blond man was wearing psychotic grin,

When nothing was left of the store, it was revealed that the blond man had two companions with him. One was a tall, tanned, muscular man with thick, brown hair. He had earrings on both his ears and was wearing a green armor-type clothing. The other man's look was quite disheveled, he had gray hair and wore a dark purple jacket. He also wore a pair of sunglasses to top it off.

"Tell us where Ultear Milkovich is, or die!" the gray-haired man threatened.

 **"BLEVE!"** the brown-haired man shouted and with a simple wave of his hand another building exploded and a massive fire erupted, something they don't see that much often.

"If you don't tell us where Ultear Milkovich is, then by two hours, this town's population will be reduced to zero." the gray-haired man warned once again.

The citizens of Lupus panicked at the men's demands because they have no idea who they were talking about or what this Ultear person looked like. It was more than ten years since they heard the name Milkovich, it was the family name of their strongest mage Ul. But according to news, Ul had unfortunately lost her life defending a town from being destroyed by the demon, Deliora. Due to their threats, the townsfolk ran around town in a state of panic.

-LINE BREAK-

Since living alone, Ultear became a much earlier riser. She looked at the window and saw that the night sky had been replaced by a layer of dark clouds. This was the normal weather in this country, the sun's appearance was quite rare. She looked at her guests sleeping on the floor and a small smile crept to her lips. Natsu, Happy and Hisui slept soundly on the mat placed on the wooden floor. She thought that if Happy hadn't slept between them, Natsu and Hisui would have cuddled in their sleep.

Ultear went outside to greet the wonderful morning only to find out that there were people running around in a state of panic. She looked at the distance and saw smoke climbing up to the sky. Already feeling the sense of danger, she went to the direction of the smoke, moving as fast as her feeble legs and cane could take her.

She didn't have time to wake her three guests, they looked comfortable at the moment. Ultear didn't have the time to ask the panicking citizens since there was a feeling in her gut that she didn't need to. Maintaining her fast pace for a span of ten minutes, she reached the site of the burnt building. When she took a closer look, she could see three faces that were very familiar to her eyes. The old wounds of the past had once again been opened. The feeling of fear, guilt and resentment crept unto her skin, ready to swallow her alive.

 _'Rustyrose, Azuma, Zancrow. No, how could it?! Azuma and Zancrow was confirmed dead on Tenroujima seven years ago, this must be Rusty's Arc of Embodiment.'_ she said in her thoughts.

"Azuma, Zancrow we are going to paint the town red until they hand over Ultear Milkovich!" the gray-haired man, named as Rustyrose shouted and his companions grinned in satisfaction.

"Please sir, we don't know who you're asking for!" one of the last remaining citizens on the scene pleaded.

Hearing Rustyrose's demands, Ultear's fear and suspicion was confirmed. There was no way she would drag innocent people into this situation so she hardened her resolve and walked over to them.

"I am Ultear Milkovich!" she boldly declared. "What do you want, Rusty?"

The gray-haired man eyed her and smirked, "I heard what happened to you. I must say, you don't look as beautiful as you were. Such a shame."

"Get to the point." Ultear snapped.

"At least your temper hasn't changed." Rustyrose calmly said. "I'm simply here to ask you to join us once again, to reform Grimoire Heart. Along with Meredy, of course."

"Meredy? What does she have to do with this?" Ultear questioned harshly since she did not want to involve her daughter into this.

"I offered Meredy the same thing but I was stopped by Jellal and her new friends, the Oracion Seis." Rustyrose said in a mocking tone. "But with you on board, I could convince her with ease."

"I'm sorry Rusty, but I've put that life behind me, now. And so should you." Ultear said to her misguided former guild mate.

"Oh, walking on the path of light now, are we?" Rustyrose mocked. "Remember how close we were, Ultear. How close we were to Zeref, to the Grand Magic World."

"If you don't come with us, we will kill every citizen in this god-forsaken town." Rustyrose threatened once more.

"And let me show you how I plan to stop you." Ultear replied and took on an Ice Make stance.

"Very funny, Ultear. You may be stronger and more experienced than I am but with what you are now, it's impossible to defeat me!" Rustyrose boasted.

"We'll see." Ultear said, getting serious. "ICE MAKE: ROSEN KRONE!" A garden made of ice sprouted from the ground and made its way to the arrogant Rustyrose.

But before it could connect, someone had already intercepted it. It was the embodiment of Zancrow. Zancrow made black flames appear from his hands and gave Ultear a creepy and psychotic grin. **"FLAME GOD'S SCYTHE!"** he shouted and melted her ice garden with a single swing of the scythe made of black flames.

Ultear had only casted one spell but she felt that it had already drained a lot of her magic power. This wouldn't be the case, if she had aged normally but since Last Ages was forbidden magic, this kind of side effect was part of the toll she had to pay for bending the rules of reality and magic at the same time. In the end, she had not only aged greatly, but even the simplest tasks and the most basic spells drained her physical and magical energy easily.

"Finish her, but don't kill her." Rustyrose commanded Zancrow and Azuma.

 **"FLAME GOD'S BELLOW!" "BLEVE!"** Zancrow and Azuma shouted respectively and created a combination of flooding black flames and a series of explosion that was coming her way. Although Rustyrose planned to not kill her but he also wanted to hurt her as much as possible.

Ultear took her Ice Make stance once more so she could create multiple shields of ice. Dodging was no longer an option for her because of her greatly reduced speed. But before she could cast her spell, somebody's back was in front of her. And before she knew it, she was carried into the air by a pair of wings. The person who stood before her took the attack and was engulfed by it.

Her mind wandered off for a few seconds only to realize that she was already on the ground. She looked to her side and saw Hisui and Happy giving her a smile of relief. She looked to where the attack exploded and the time mage could already hear slurping noises behind it. Together with a few spectators, they were a good distance to where the fight was going on.

When Zancrow and Azuma's attack was consumed, the figure was revealed to be her unexpected but welcomed guest, Natsu Dragneel. The dragon slayer was wearing a confused look.

"Damn, I have no idea if what I just ate was real of fake." Natsu scratched his head. He turned to Hisui's direction and gave her a caring smile."Dear sister, could you please take care of our beloved grandmother? These apes are trying to hurt her so early in the morning."

Hisui, Happy and even Ultear could only sweatdrop, stifle a laugh or facepalm at Natsu's poor acting. Honestly, what kind of game was he playing?

Natsu turned his eyes to Ultear's attackers. He gave them a menacing glare. "You know, I expected a nice cup of coffee and a warm loaf of bread from my gran-gran this fine morning."

Natsu was silent for awhile before he continued still giving them a raged glare, "But seeing her almost burned alive makes me want to do the same to you... Now then, it's time you return to ashes."

 **A/N: I have a weird suspicion that the Spriggan Twelve named Invel might be Gray's friend, Pause Lightless. If you had read the Ice Trails, you would come across Pause's character. They have different magic, but they look quite similar. I just found out that Rustyrose had appeared in the filler part during the Tartaros Arc so I tried to also use his character here. Please take note that places such as Calcetta, Lupus and Mt. Triton were all made up and do not exist in the Fairy Tail universe. If I remember correctly, Triton is actually one of Neptune's moons. This is it for now, I'll try to update soon.**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: New chapter here! It has been said that E.N.D. is the vilest of Zeref's creation but personally, I don't care what his personality will be. What I have been waiting for is when Natsu will finally regain his memories before he was killed and before he was taught magic. I want to see what made the Dragneel brothers' bonds so strong that it really drove Zeref to be what he is now. Zeref could have easily narrated it but I think it will be more emotional when it will be depicted in Natsu's point of view... Read and Review!**

 **DISCLAIMER: HIRO MASHIMA OWNS FAIRY TAIL, NOT ME.**

 **"FLAME DRAGON GOD MODE!"** Natsu shouted, not wasting any time. The dragon slayer's whole body was draped in golden fire. The flames around him was so hot that the entire town felt its scalding effect, it was one of the rare times that they could feel sweat come out of their skin. Even the thick layers of snow on the ground were sloppily melted and soon evaporated. As the golden flames covered his body, there was one other thing that appeared odd about his appearance, it was his hair. His hair was black. If someone took a closer look, one would notice that it wasn't actually his hair. They were actually flames, black flames. When Natsu activates his Flame Dragon God Mode, black flames sprout from his head and stretches down to his back.

"We actually have some resistance." Rustyrose smirked. "Zancrow! Azuma!"

"So long, Lizardboy!" Zancrow shouted and clapped his hands. **"FLAME GOD'S SUPPER!"** Black flames shaped like a giant mouth engulfed around Natsu's body.

 **"TOWER BURST!"** Azuma yelled and a giant pillar of fire exploded on where Natsu was standing. This attack caused the people to immediately flee the area barring Happy, Hisui and Ultear.

As the enemy's attack raged on, Natsu opened his maw and consumed the weird-tasting flames. "Hahaha, Flame God's Supper? More like Natsu's Breakfast!" Natsu boasted as soon as he was done consuming the fire. _'These goons are definitely remnants of Grimoire Heart, but what's strange is two of them don't have any scent.'_ the dragon slayer said in his thoughts.

"Natsu, I can help!" Ultear requested to the dragon slayer. This was her problem and now her friend is caught in the middle of it which doesn't really seem surprising.

"You're getting senile, Granny. Save the little energy you have when we play some board game or something." Natsu replied, not even looking at the old lady.

"I agree with him, Ultear. You need to rest, Natsu will take care of them." Hisui assured. Although she should be more worried about Natsu, she learned during the few months of their travel that Natsu was actually most comfortable when he's in a brawl or a fight. But still, she remained vigilant of what might be the outcome.

 **"RAMUS SICA!"** Azuma shouted and an array of sharp tree branches were flying towards Natsu.

"Tch. Don't you know what burns down forests?" Natsu warned, glaring at Zancrow and Azuma. Natsu dealt with the sharp branches by igniting his whole body, burning them before they could make contact. "You two are clearly outmatched!"

In the blink of an eye, Natsu closed the distance and was already having a firm clutch on both Zancrow and Azuma's faces. **"FLAME DRAGON GOD'S CRUSHING GRIP!"** Natsu pressed down both his hands and an immense ball of black and golden fire erupted.

Rustyrose stood there, too late to react to Natsu's speed. In almost an instant two of his strongest projections were gone. There was actually no problem conjuring them once again but Zancrow and Azuma would only be a bad match against Natsu. His attacks had easily melted the surrounding layers of snow.

 **"SACRED GUARDIAN BEAST: BELCUSAS THE THUNDERCLAP!"** Rustyrose made a gesture with his hands. A giant, armored creature was called into existence and stood by his side.

Belcusas charged at Natsu at full speed aiming to pummel him. Natsu had easily dodged the punches that were thrown at him by the beast. **"FLAME DRAGON GOD'S SMOLDERING FIST!"** Natsu coated his fist with the combination of dragon and god flames and connected at the beast's gut. Before it could be sent flying, Natsu held on to it and threw the giant creature at Rustyrose's direction.

"Damn it. It seems none of my pets are strong enough to beat him. I'll have to fight with better offense." the gray-haired man gritted through his teeth. **"JET BLACK SWORD!"** Rustyrose transformed his right arm into a giant, black claw and aimed it at the direction of the unconscious beast that was coming at him. The black claw extended and easily pierced the armored beast, vanishing almost immediately. The black claw was now heading towards Natsu's direction.

The dragon slayer was taken by surprise when a black claw burst out of the beast's body and came at him fast. He sidestepped to his right and evaded a fatal blow. Natsu could not escape from it quickly enough and felt the black claw graze his left shoulder, drawing a small trickle of blood.

"The Jet Black Sword can pierce anything!" Rustyrose shouted at Natsu.

Although the wound did not hamper any of Natsu's movement, it was time for a counterattack and finish the fight as fast as possible. _**"With the dragon flames on my right hand and with the god flames on my left hand, bring them together!**_ **DRAGON GOD'S BRILLIANT FLAME!"** Natsu chanted and created a giant ball of black and golden fire, hurled towards Rustyrose.

 **"GOLDEN SHIELD!"** the gray-haired man defended. His left arm turned into a gold-colored shield to protect himself from the fire that was not affected by slightest even with the cold air around them.

When the flames died down, it scorched everything on Rustyrose's surrounding, except Rustyrose himself. The gray-haired man stood with a smug grin, showing off his Golden Shield that was not even scratched by the slightest. "My Golden Shield is impenetrable to any attack!" Rustyrose arrogantly declared.

 _'That attack had one hell of a punching power and it couldn't even singe that tin can?!'_ Natsu shouted inwardly. _'Either way, it won't be able to cover his whole body.'_ Natsu ran to Rustyrose with unimaginable to fight in close combat.

 **"PEGASUS WINGS!"** the dark mage shouted and grew a pair of wings on his back and flew away from the dragon slayer. **"JET BLACK SWORD!"** he turned his right arm into a black claw again and aimed at the dragon slayer.

Natsu jumped away before the black claw could connect, "Happy, let's take this to the air!" he called to his best friend.

"Aye sir!" the exceed agreed and immediately flew to pick up Natsu.

Natsu used the same strategy and continued to try to engage Rustyrose in close combat. So far, nothing worked since every time he tried to get closer, the dark mage would use Jet Black Sword to push him away. And if he got close enough, Rustyrose was quick enough to block his attack with the Golden Shield. This kind of exchange continued for a couple of minutes until Natsu realized it was going nowhere.

"Hmmm, Natsu seems to be having trouble landing a hit." Hisui reflected. "If only he could get a hold of that claw of his." she suggested.

"Easier said than done, the Jet Black Sword extends and retracts almost instantly." Ultear added.

Natsu was also thinking along the same lines as Hisui was and tried to think how to act on it. "It's quite hard but not impossible." he muttered under his breath.

"Happy, let's take this fight somewhere narrow." Natsu said to his partner.

"If you say so." Happy agreed.

The idiotic duo charged at Rustyrose only to fake an attack and fly away. "Is this all your capable of? Pitiful!" the dark mage arrogantly challenged. Rustyrose decided to initiate the offense and have Natsu and Happy on the receiving end. Rustyrose continued to fire assaults at Natsu and Happy while the duo continued to follow through their plan.

After a few rounds of attacking and dodging, the combatants were already a considerable distance from the town and were surrounded by mountain rocks way above the ground covered in snow. The two were getting closer and closer with each other.

"You have nowhere to run, you imbecile! **JET BLACK SWORD!** " Rustyrose shouted and aimed another Jet Black Sword at Natsu who was only about fifteen feet away from him.

Happy barely dodged the attack by flying up and the Jet Black Sword pierced through a rock. Rustyrose realized then what they were getting at because he was struggling to retract his Jet Black Sword that got stuck. Natsu never wasted a moment and quickly grabbed the black claw, locking it firmly under his arm.

The dark mage was shocked at what Natsu did and immeadiately brought forth his Golden Shield to cover himself. He was even more surprised when Natsu easily lifted him up in the air, exposing his defenseless back. The dragon slayer proceeded to slam the dark mage's uncovered back to the nearest rock he could find. Rustyrose grunted and screamed in pain at the contact and could feel the bruises forming on his back. But Natsu wasn't nearly done, the pinkette continued to pound the dark mage's body to the rocks until he was to weak to initiate a counterattack.

"Who's pitiful now?!" Natsu cheered after a few more slams. Happy was also wearing a satisfied smirk at the enemy's imminent defeat. "I will not let you losers get near Ultear again whose living her life for the better!"

Feeling that the dark mage was too weak to retaliate, Natsu grabbed Rustyrose's face and gripped on it firmly.

"Let's soar through the skies, Happy!" Natsu yelled.

"Aye sir!"

 **"FLAME DRAGON GOD'S WINGBEAT!"** the combination of flames danced in a form of a tornado was created by Natsu's appendages and soared through the sky with the limp form of the enemy.

Hisui and Ultear started to worry because Natsu and Rustyrose could no longer be seen by them. Their worries were washed away when a tornado of flames burst through the thick fog. They looked as Natsu and Happy soared majestically through the sky reminding them of a dragon flying freely.

"It truly is beautiful." Hisui smiled.

"Indeed." Ultear added.

Hisui and Ultear immediately went to where Natsu had landed with Rustyrose. When they got there Natsu gave them a victory sign with an ear to ear grin. He was holding the unconscious form of Rustyrose by the collar.

"After getting my ass kicked by Jerk Serena and Gildarts a few months ago, this is my first win!" he proudly declared.

"Congratulations, Natsu." Hisui smiled fondly at Natsu.

"Yeah, but what was that you pulled of earlier? That was really bad acting, you know?" Ultear asked teasingly.

"I didn't know my acting was that bad. And besides, I kinda heard that the people here don't know who you are so I made the grandma and grandson act. Pretty clever huh?" Natsu explained and gave himself an imaginary pat on the back.

"Yeah... right." Ultear sweatdropped.

"What do you plan to do with him, Natsu?" Hisui asked, looking at the unresponsive dark mage.

Before Natsu could answer, he felt daggers on his skin and realized it was the townsfolk glaring at him. He smiled cluelessly at them which made them even angrier and were ready to eviscerate him because of what he turned their peaceful town into. Several houses and buildings were in ashes as result of the fight that took place just moments ago.

Ultimately, Hisui was the one who pled for Natsu's case. Natsu just let her because Hisui was good at talking to people without provoking them. The issue was finally settled when Hisui offered to pay for the damages Natsu caused. It was also decided that Rustyrose must be turned to the council which he was.

-LINE BREAK-

 **Nighttime:**

The night sky was now covering the face of Earthland and as usual there were no stars to be seen in the town of Lupus because of their country's harsh climate. Natsu, Happy and Hisui ended up vacating the room they had rented since they all opted to fill up Ultear's small hut instead. Natsu had still yet to decide on where they'll head to next because there were so many places to choose from. And the best part is that he didn't have to take a single transportation no matter how far it was.

"Natsu." Ultear suddenly spoke as she broke Natsu and Hisui's concentration as they looked at the Ishgar map. The two were on the wooden floor as they laid the map of Ishgar to look for places they could travel next. "I've come to a decision."

"Oh, and what do you say?" Natsu looked up and gave a hopeful smile.

"I will live in Magnolia if you let me come with you as you train throughout Ishgar." Ultear said in a serious tone, making her wrinkles appear more pronounced.

"I don't see why not." the dragon slayer replied nonchalantly.

"But be warned Natsu, I'm not as fit as I used to be. I could really slow you down." Ultear warned.

"No worries, the only thing in this world that can slow me down is transportation and one day I will kick its ass." Natsu confirmed and raised a fist in the air. "You should start packing up, we'll leave the day after tomorrow.

As Happy slept contently on the small couch, Ultear and Hisui gave a small laugh at Natsu's words since there was some truth in it. Hisui was also glad that Ultear was coming with them because as much as she loved the idiotic duo's company, she too longed for a female companion. Now she had someone to talk to when Natsu and Happy were out training. And besides, there was also something she was dying to ask Ultear and that was to help her make a cure for Natsu's motion sickness. Ultear was happy as well, as much as she loved the inner peace solitude gave her, she could use some company as well. Even if she looked like an old hag, she was only in her mid twenties. And inner peace and solitude are not what young people mostly enjoy.

"I'll be in your care, princess." Ultear said to Hisui.

"I am truly glad that you decided to come with us and please, call me Hisui." Hisui replied kindly.

-LINE BREAK-

 **Unknown Place:**

In the middle of the meadows in some place long forgotten, a young man with short, black hair and dark eyes is seen lying on the ground, gazing at the night sky. He was wearing black robes with a flowing white toga wrapped around his torso. The man's name was Zeref, widely known as history's strongest and most evil mage. He had just awoken from a dream or rather, a memory. The past that drove him to what he is today, an immortal. The dark mage pulled out a book from his robe. It was a couple of inches thick and it was hard-bound. Its title was E.N.D.

"Four hundred years, huh?" Zeref said to himself, looking at the book reflectively."Mard Geer did an excellent job keeping your book in pristine condition, not a speck of dust nor the passage of time is noticeable."

"The day is almost upon us. The one who will reach me will be one or the other." Zeref continued.

Zeref put the book away and continued to gaze at the starry night, as he looked at it emotionlessly, he lulled himself into another trip to the memory lane, the events of a forgotten age.

 ** _FLASHBACK:_**

 _ **Four Centuries A** go:_

 _The earth, the sea and the sky is dyed in blood, war was all over Earthland. This conflagration is easily the bloodiest and the most horrifying of all conflicts ever recorded in Earthland history. The reason for it being so, is because it was not a war between humans disputing over a piece of land or territory, but rather it was a war that will determine if humans should be allowed to live at all. The warring ones were also not humans, but dragons, they were the mightiest creatures to ever roam Earthland. From land to sea and to sky, the dragons dominated throughout Earthland._

 _The civil war of the dragons were fought because of the disgust the dragons felt of the idea that humans and dragons should co-exist. One faction sided to protect the humans and wanted to live with them in harmony and the other faction wanted nothing to do with humans, other than being food source. Though the humans were weak and powerless, they were the only creatures that matches the intelligence and sophistication of the dragons. In the end, no faction triumphed. The dragons ended up being the rarer breed compared to humans._

 _The worst outcome of the war was that almost all of Earthland's ethernano is gone. Ethernano are particles in the air that supplies a mage's magic container in order to perform magic, it also works the same way with dragons. This was the war's most devastating aftermath, only the world's most skilled mages were capable enough to perform magic. Zeref had been one of them._

 _Wallowing in misery and resentment, he descended to the deepest parts of magic. Using the time immortality bestowed him, Zeref immersed himself in research to break free from Ankhseram's Curse and end his life._

 _"Are you certain about this, Igneel?" Zeref asked a giant red dragon. Igneel is widely known as the Fire Dragon King, but now that most of his comrades are gone, he was just another dragon._

 _ **"Fairly."** the dragon answered. **"Only the dead can bring an end to an immortal's life."**_

 _Zeref and Igneel had been acquaintances for quite some time now. The two of them carried different burdens and will always talk about them if they have the time. Though their goals were different, they were going to put their faith on the same person to achieve it._

 _"I have another question." Zeref stated in a dead serious tone._

 _Igneel just grunted in response, telling him to ask away._

 _"Is it possible to kill gods?" Zeref question, still maintaining the seriousness. "If there is Dragon Slaying Magic, is there also God Slaying Magic?"_

 _Igneel was thoughful for a moment before responding, **"I haven't heard of one, but it doesn't sound impossible. One thing we know is that magic will never be fully known. It can bring miracles to your side but also cause grief and sadness as well."**_

 _"I see." Zeref answered thoughtfully. "I need to have backup plans."_

 _ **"I don't want to meddle with your affairs, but I expect that you will keep your end of the bargain"** Igneel stated._

 _"You have my word." the immortal replied._

 _-LINE BREAK-_

 _ **Five Years Later at Mildea:**_

 _Zeref is standing at the middle of a ruined temple. The statues, the scriptures and the doctrines, Zeref desecrated and destroyed all of them. He was wearing a sinister, apathetic grin, his eyes were colored red. Black waves of energy were coming out of him. He mercilessly killed all of the temple maidens that were supposed to guard the statues and the scriptures of their revered deity. Of course there was active resistance but none of them proved to be a match for Zeref._

 _A figure materialized out of nowhere, standing like a cloaked shadow. He was shaped like a human but did not appeared to be so. The figure had two discs on his head that denotes its eyes. His body was adorned with ethereal lines that formed various patterns. The lines looked like an arrow head or a clock hand. The figure looked at the surroundings, broken statues, destroyed temple and dead maidens. He sent Zeref a hateful glare and the atmosphere became heavier._

 _The immortal responded with an indifferent smile. "Greetings, God Chronus."_

 _ **"Who art thou?"** the figure known as Chronus asked in response. The voice had the mixture of both a man and a woman and it had an eerie and chilling tone. Its glare intensified even more, some debris were vanishing out of existence._

 _"I am Zeref." he replied. "And I came here to kill you." Zeref also answered with a cold glare of his own and a staredown between two extremely powerful beings ensued._

 _ **"Hahahaha! A mere mortal?! Such haughtiness! Such blasphemy!"** Chronus bellowed. The god looked at Zeref as if he was a mere pest, but the tone in his voice carried so much animosity and loathing._

 _Zeref wanted to prove a point to the god that was mocking his goal and immediately wanted to prove his point. He fired a black ball of concentrated energy towards the god, who was still mocking him._

 _The black ball hit the god's face which made his eyes widen. **"Plague of Ankhseram."** Chronos muttered before glaring at Zeref once more. The bruise that was on the god's face vanished quickly. **"I, Chronos the God of Time shall bring judgment upon thee!"** the god shouted and made a clicking sound with its teeth. "Age Seal." Chronos whispered._

 _Everything around them stopped, the wind stopped breezing and the nearby trees stopped swaying and everything in the world stood still. Only the God of Time was able to move around freely since this was his domain. Zeref's time was also stopped as he stood there motionless and unresponsive. Chronos walked towards Zeref and prepared to decapitate him. But before it was accomplished, a searing pain connected to Chronos' gut which sent the deity back a few feet. What the god couldn't believe was the absolute pain he felt from that single attack. It was enough to make the deity clutch its midsection and check the gravity of the injury._

 _Chronos looked at Zeref's form and saw him still sporting an indifferent smile but the most shocking part was that there were black flames that danced on Zeref's palms. The aura the black flames emitted, gave off an unsettling feeling towards Chronos. It was also the first time the deity had felt so much pain._

 _"Your time-manipulating abilities will have no effect on an immortal such as I." Zeref stated. "The laws of time cannot judge an undying creature." he continued._

 _The time god seethed at Zeref's words, a mere insect was lecturing a feared and revered deity. Chronos did not like the way Zeref talked, the wrath of time will befall the offender. **"Thou shall not oppose me!"** the deity shouted in blinding rage. Chronos stood straight and pointed a finger at Zeref. **"Pierce him through the ends of time!"** the god chanted and a sharp beam of concentrated energy came out of Chronos' pointing finger._

 _The immortal simply stood and never bothered to counter the attack. The energy beam pierced Zeref's forehead and went through the back of his head. When the attack dissipated, it was shown that there was a hole on Zeref's forehead that should have pierced his brain and should have killed him already. But as the time god witnessed, Zeref was still standing, still breathing and was very much alive._

 _"Are you surprised?" Zeref calmly asked which seemed to aggravate Chronos even more._

 _ **"Time God's Bellow!"** Chronos opened its jaw and unleashed a purple beam of energy at Zeref. The attack was strong enough turn anything it touches into oblivion._

 _The cursed immortal simply put both of his palms to guard himself from the onslaught. When the attack connected, Zeref's palms was able to split the attack into two. The magnitude of the attack was strong enough to create a giant crater and all remnants of Chronos' temple were gone without a trace._

 _"You're wasting your time, Chronos." Zeref said as the wounds on his forehead and on his palms healed up._

 _ **"Age Scratch!"** Chronos roared and hundreds of clock-like hands appeared out of nowhere and circled around Zeref. The clock hands assaulted the immortal from all directions. "Thou shall drown in woe!"_

 _Zeref felt all the pain from the god's attack. It was the most agonizing thing he felt for quite a while now. It wasn't just physical pain but mental and emotional pain as well. Zeref clung to his head as he suffered all the pain he went through with his life._

 _ **"Repent!"** Chronos roared once more as more clock hands attacked Zeref again. The clock hands easily pierced the immortal who was already on his knees in agony._

 _Zeref regained his concentration as he fought through the pain. He made a clap of his hands and black flames exploded underneath Chronos. "I came here to kill the God of Time." he whispered in a menacing tone._

 _Now, it was the time god who was screaming in agony. A being who is as old as time itself felt suffering for the first time. The black flames burned and seared through the deity's very core. Chronos looked at Zeref and saw the cold, heartless glare of the immortal._

 _"It is over." the immortal said in a vehement tone. He raised his hand up and a giant flash of black lightning came down from a magic circle. The black lightning shocked Chronos as the deity was still being consumed by the black flames. Zeref thrust his palms and came out a surge of black winds that ravaged the time god even more._

 _Zeref felt the pain of Chronos' attack beginning to fade and continued his relentless assault. The God of Time is currently at the mercy of the black-colored flames, lightning and wind. As the flames and lightning burned and paralyzed its body the wind was also shredding anything it touches._

 _The immortal continued the assault until the time god finally stopped screaming and was no longer resisting. When Zeref's spells had dissipated, he walked towards the feeble form of the deity. He stepped on his head and applied a bone-crushing pressure. Chronos was filled with scratches, bruises and even open wounds. The time god felt the feeling of fear as Zeref looked at him with a cold, focused and apathetic gaze. It definitely had been the first time that a human was looking down on a god as if it had been a mere insect._

 _"So it is possible." Zeref said and ignited his palm with black flames. "This power will be named as God Slaying Magic, the only magic that can kill gods."_

 _"This is my backup plan if ever I fail. Forgive me for using you as a test subject Chronos, but as you can see, I deeply loathe many things in this world." Zeref said, his becoming sharper at the end. The black flames on Zeref's palms became even more intense. "This will be my last attack, whether you live or die is none of my concern."_

 **END OF FLASBACK  
**

As Zeref woke from another lucid dream, he began to think about the advancement of his plans. He pulled out the book of E.N.D once more and looked at it.

 _'Mard Geer is gone, the Nine Demon Gates are gone, you've done well Mavis. I'm going to expect more from you.'_ Zeref said in his thoughts.

Zeref remained thoughtful for a while and looked at the sky. He noticed that the sun had already risen, so he put the book back and stood up.

"I have matters to attend to but first, I'm going to rewrite one of my masterpiece." he said to no one.

-LINE BREAK-

 **Two Days Later at Lupus:**

Natsu, Happy, Hisui and their new companion, Ultear, are preparing to embark on their journey and they were all ready to head out. They were planning to travel to the country of Stella and see what it could offer to Natsu's training. Natsu was aiming to attain a stronger version of his Fire Dragon Slayer Magic. Igneel told him that it was possible and if Happy managed to achieve an upgrade of his Aera, then he should be able to do it as well. The pinkette believed that even with the extraordinary powers of a lightning dragon and a flame god, he originally uses Fire Dragon Slaying Magic and should be and will always be his strongest element. It will be an insult to the Fire Dragon King's pride if the dragon slayer he raised was reliant of the supplementary abilities that he shouldn't have possessed.

With Ultear's help, Hisui was able to conclude that the magic the Spriggan Twelve member Jacob, uses a type of spatial magic that is called Stealth. It enables the user to see the unseen and turn visible things invisible and is impossible to detect. Truly a frightening ability. The young lady and the old woman spent a lot of time together since they could relate with each other and both were quite knowledgeable.

"You promise to carry me when I'm exhausted, okay Natsu?" Ultear requested the pinkette.

"Sure, I don't mind." Natsu answered casually.

"Try not to get jealous Hisui, its only when I'm unable to walk any longer." Ultear said earnestly to the princess. She really meant her words and were not conveyed in a teasing manner.

Hisui blushed a little at the old lady's words and the way she said it. She could feel an heated gaze that was on her and saw that Natsu looking at her intensely. It made her feel uncomfortable and she could already hear Happy snickering behind her.

"What's wrong, Natsu?" Hisui asked nervously. She looked at her outfit if there was anything that caught the dragon slayer's attention.

"Hisui, tell me when you're pooped, okay?" Natsu said, still locking his eyes with the princess. Hisui's cheeks were covered in rosy hues and smiled a little at Natsu's offer.

"Okay, Natsu." she reluctantly replied.

"Good. I'll tell Happy to carry you by then." the dragon slayer said. Hisui sweatdropped and an uncomfortable feeling rose from her chest. Happy sighed in disappointment while Ultear stepped on Natsu's foot, leaving the dragon slayer groaning in pain.

"Ugghhh, what was that for?!" Natsu yelled while trying to ease the pain on his foot.

"You'll understand someday." Ultear answered in a wise and knowing tone.

Natsu gave a deep sigh, still very confused. "Fine, let's just go."

 **A/N: With the revation of Eileen, I think Hiro is trying to keep Erza within the list of high tier characters that will continue to do damage on the Alvarez Empire. I wonder what makes Eileen Buresion so powerful that she earned the title as the 'Strongest Woman' Is she really stronger than Dimaria? Dimaria's ability was so OP that she could have easily beheaded everyone if she hadn't wasted her time dress breaking Kagura. So OP that Hiro had to drag Ultear's fine ass so they could initiate a counter attack. Even though I'm afraid of how fast-paced the manga is going right now, I'm glad that the story is getting better and that's all I'm asking. Till next time.**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: New chapter here! I never expected I'd be busy for the whole month of May so I apologize for not being able to update. I was so busy that I was barely able to read the story updates of my favorite stories. Once again, I apologize for my lateness. Please read and review!  
**

 **DISCLAIMER: HIRO MASHIMA OWNS FAIRY TAIL, NOT ME.**

 **Three Months Later:**

 _April 7, X792_

 _Dear Diary,_

 _It has been seven months since I traveled with Natsu and Happy, seven months since I last seen Arcadios and the Royal Guards and seven months since I found out that there will be all-out war that is about to break out. But even with everything that has happened, I am still happy and I feel alright. Although the thought of never seeing Arcadios and the others again keeps me awake at times, but every time I see Natsu always having a positive attitude, I cannot help but think positive as well. His attitude is quite contagious and I am quite thankful for that. However, quite recently, I have not been looking at Natsu the same way-_

"I should finish this later." Hisui muttered to herself. She closed her diary and put down her pen. Hisui was now back to her old outfit since they were now in a much warmer environment. She walked and head to where Ultear was and observe Natsu's training.

The four of them have traveled through the country of Stella, they never really stayed at one place for too long. Now, they were nearing Stella's borders and unto the country of Joya. Natsu's training was still progressive, he continues to get stronger everyday. In time he will master the Fire Dragon King Mode. It is a more advanced and complicated form of his Fire Dragon Slayer Magic and only the true heir of the Fire Dragon King, Igneel, can attain.

Stella is a beautiful country, much like Fiore. They almost the same size based on land area. The nature, wildlife and civilization are co-existing in harmony. Just like Edolas, Stella also relies on technology to compensate for the rarity of mages. One of the country's attraction was the night sky. Stella had the clearest view of the night sky in all of Ishgar. Billions of stars would be visible to the naked eye and people loved looking at them through the lens of a telescope.

"Ugghhh, I feel-ugghhh." Natsu groaned as he clutched his stomach, his face looked sickly and was threatening to vomit. He was currently kneeling pitifully on a floating raft. _'Shit! This is the only thing I can't overcome with my sheer stubbornness and willpower.'_ he shouted in his thoughts.

The dragon slayer was in the middle of a lake so he didn't have to worry about getting swept by the current like last time. Light breeze of wind kept the raft moving and thus, causing Natsu's motion sickness. Natsu decided that it was time to face his fears and kick its stupid ass and nothing else haunted Natsu more frequently than every mode of transportation known to man. But so far, the raft seems to be winning and was absolutely flooring the pinkette. Happy and Ultear would sometimes throw attacks at him, for him to focus on them instead of the discomfort he felt from the motion sickness. So far, none worked and Natsu was lying motionlessly on the raft like a fat, drunk and stupid man on the street, covered in small bruises.

"Nothing worked, we're out of alternatives." Ultear commented. She felt better traveling with Natsu, the three months she spent with the group were the best of times since she became an old woman.

"Aye, Natsu's case is hopeless." Happy added. "When Lucy gave him a piggy back ride, he threw up. But when I carry him or when he rides on the back of any animal, he feels fine. His motion sickness is so hard to figure out that I've given up a long time ago."

"That is quite strange and it is common to all dragon slayers, even the second and third generation." Ultear muttered thoughtfully.

"Happy, I think you should bring Natsu here. He looks terrible and he could use a good rest." Hisui announced as she made her presence known to the group.

Happy nodded and flew over to the raft and picked up Natsu's limp form. When they landed to the ground, Natsu tried to hug and kiss the ground and grass beneath him. He felt better almost instantly when he was back in solid ground.

"Oh land, may we never part again!" the dragon slayer cried comically. He rolled back and forth, relishing his reunion with the earth.

Hisui and Ultear laughed at Natsu's actions. No matter how much Natsu improved these past months, he still acts childish at times. But they were aware that they could count on him if anything happens. The dragon slayer and his foster son were definitely once in a lifetime companions. No wonder Lucy had halcyon times at Fairy Tail, it was because of Natsu and Happy. It seemed that Natsu embodied the eternal adventure that defined Fairy Tail's insignia. And now, Hisui and Ultear were a part of it, Ultear could only wish she looked younger as she experienced these. Both ladies learned to never take a moment for granted and enjoy everything life offers.

"Natsu, how about you take a break and eat lunch with us? You've been working so hard lately." Hisui requested the dragon slayer.

Natsu smiled at her offer. "You always have the best ideas and you're nowhere as cranky as Ultear." he beamed.

The princess smiled in appreciation at Natsu compliment while Ultear frowned "I only scolded you because of your reckless behavior." the old lady countered.

The four of them proceeded to eat lunch in the middle of forest. As they were nearing the country's borders, they decided to make a brief stop in the forest where there was a giant lake located with tons of fish inhabiting it. There was a town just a few miles ahead and that was where they planned to stay a night or two.

Natsu gave his tummy a satisfied pat as he finished his lunch. He was lying contentedly on the grass waiting for his lunch to digest so he could resume training. Happy had also been lying lazily beside him experiencing fish overdose, too full to lift a paw.

"Natsu, come here. Ultear and I have a surprise for you, it might help you a bit in your training." Hisui called out to the dragon slayer.

Natsu's senses perked up when he heard the word 'surprise' He got up and ran to where Hisui's voice was and left Happy lying on the grass, too weak to help himself.

"So what's the surprise? Should I close my eyes?" Natsu asked in a hopeful tone.

"Here, Natsu." Hisui said and gave the dragon slayer a small flask filled with a purple-colored liquid. "I started making this a few months ago, unfortunately I had no idea how to finish it. Thankfully, Ultear came and helped me finish it. She's quite knowledgeable about these certain things."

"What is this to be exact?" the pinkette asked while carefully observing the bottled liquid. It was bubbling inside, Natsu was not sure if it was safe to drink. His instincts told him that it was harmful and should be left alone.

"It is the cure to your motion sickness. If you drink that, it will release a calming effect to your mind. However the duration of the effects is still unknown since this is the first time it's been tested." Hisui answered, quite proud of their accomplishment.

"So I'm a lab rat, then?" the pinkette asked and took a whiff of the purple liquid. He instantly closed the flask and gave it back. "It smells like Gramps' toenails coupled with Elfman's armpits. There is absolutely no way that it can cure my motion sickness." he rejected.

"Well, it's supposed to smell that way." Ultear said, smirking. "We didn't have anyone to run tests on it so you'll just have to do that for us. We'll improve from there on."

"Please, Natsu. I promise next time it'll smell and taste a little better. It's the only alternative we have for your motion sickness." Hisui requested the dragon slayer.

Natsu looked at Hisui's face and gave in. "Fine, but there better not be an old man's toenails here." Natsu sighed. He took the bottle from the princess' hands and drank it one gulp. His face contorted a little before he gave the bottle back to Hisui.

"Except for the disgusting taste, I feel nothing." Natsu deadpanned. He looked around to try and feel the effects.

"Settle down for a couple of minutes, Natsu." Ultear advised.

After relaxing for a couple of minutes, Natsu went and propelled his feet with flames unto the floating raft. When he landed, small waves were made and the raft was shaking for a bit. When the waves settled a bit, Natsu was seen with a wide grin on his face. He was standing even as the wooden raft was pushed by the forest breeze.

"I feel nothing!" Natsu loudly declared. "Hahahaha. **FIRE DRAGON KING'S ROAR!"** he opened his jaw and shot a breath attack towards the sky. A large pillar of flames pierced through the clouds as if it was paper. It was enough to force Happy to move and look at Natsu.

"Woah, Natsu' standing on the raft. What did I miss?" the exceed asked as he got closer to Hisui and Ultear.

"We gave Natsu a cure to his motion sickness. It seems to have worked." Hisui answered as Natsu continued to perform magic spells while he was afloat.

"Though, we don't know for how long." Ultear added.

For the next thirty minutes, Natsu was happily practicing his magic spells, staying on the raft. Then suddenly, as he was about to unleash another breath attack, instead of fire coming out of his maw, it was his lunch. He was regurgitating his previous meal in all directions which disgusted his spectators. Happy, Ultear and especially Hisui covered their eyes as Natsu was once again reduced to a pathetic state.

"H-help m-me." the dragon slayer pleaded.

"Well, at least it worked for a while." Ultear commented, as she pitied the pinkette. His rejoice was so short lived. "Thirty minutes on our first try isn't too bad. We've got more rooms for improvement."

"Happy, I think you should go and help Natsu." Hisui said as she mentally took note of her observations.

"Aye."

Happy fetched Natsu from the raft and laid him on the ground. He looked a little better as soon as he felt the .

"Wendy's Troia spell lasted much longer on her first try, more than a day." the pinkette complained.

"Well, what do you expect? Wendy is a practitioner of a Lost Magic. The one we made would pale in comparison against Sky Dragon Slaying Magic which is primarily used for support and healing." Ultear rebutted while thinking of ways to prolong the effects.

"Good point." Natsu replied tiredly.

"We still have time to improve, Natsu. I am sure Ultear and I will think of something soon, you can count on us." Hisui said in a positive tone.

-LINE BREAK-

 **Nighttime at the Nearby Town:**

They reached the town by nightfall and booked a room at the local inn. The town was called Akain, in honor of their hero who made the lands in their town fertile again after being barren for a long time. It was quite a lively, small town and the people were quite hospitable. They came at the right time since the town is celebrating an annual feast in honor of their hero. The entertainment featured. contests, dancing, food and many others, things that Natsu and Happy gladly took part. Natsu and Happy made their celebration even more lively just by being themselves. The townsfolk particularly enjoyed the duo's company and ultimately led the duo to become too pooped when they reached the inn and fell asleep almost instantly.

At the moment, Hisui was looking at her unfinished diary entry. Her companions were already fast asleep from the rather tiring day they had. Ultimately, the princess decided to write a new entry and tore off the unfinished page she wrote earlier. However she did not dispose of the torn paper, instead she put it in the box where she stores her valuable items like her jewelry for example.

 _'Sorting out these things is more tedious than figuring out Natsu's problem with transportation.'_ the green-haired princess said in her thoughts.

Seeing that her companions were already asleep she decided to join them. She switched off the lights and lied on her bed. After a few minutes of staring at the darkness, sleep was able to claim her and dozed off.

...

 **"You gave me a name."** a booming voice said. **"I've waited for so long, and now you're finally here."**

Hisui immediately awoken as she heard the loud voice. She found herself in the middle of the forest. The forest was dense and thick, the trees were towering and they seemed to stretch on boundlessly. The loud voice she heard echoed throughout the forest, startling the birds and causing them to flee. The voice sounded a bit familiar to her but she could not put a name to it. She scanned her surroundings and only saw a thick layer of vegetation.

"Natsu? Happy? Ultear? Are you here?" she asked loudly.

No one answered her, the forest was dead silent. Hisui was beginning to worry since their were no signs of her companions. She had no idea how high the sun was up since the tall trees were blocking most of the sunlight. Realizing that no one was around her, she decided to follow one of the forest's trail. She clutched her shoulder with her hands since the forest radiated a thick aura of power and mystery.

 **"Follow my voice."** the loud voice said once more, halting Hisui's pace.

"W-who are you?!" the princess stuttered. She slightly trembled at the voice's loudness and intensity. Terrified by the voice booming through the forest, she went to follow another pathway. She ran to another direction where the voice won't be so loud.

As she ran, she stumbled upon a rock and fell. She stood as quick as she possibly could and continued to run away from the voice, not minding the sting that was on her knees.

 **"You are the one."** the voice boomed once more. **"At last."**

"Who are you?!" Hisui yelled shakily.

 **"Our paths finally converged. Come, I will lead you to where your inheritance is."** the voice answered, still full of mystery and allure.

As the princess trudged endlessly in the vast forest, she became tired and hampered by the bruise on her knees. She struggled to maintain consciousness and she felt the last of her strength leave her. The princess had no idea how far she traversed on the vast forest but she could still feel the presence of the mysterious voice following her wherever she direction she headed.

Having no idea how much time had past, an exhausted Hisui stumbled upon a cave. Without a thought, she entered the cave with a wide entrance. She couldn't see anything but that didn't stop her in exploring the dark cave. Her body felt numb as she continued walking, she only used her intuition to guide her through the darkness. It was something surreal to her, she's never done anything remotely close to what she's doing now, which led her to think that something or someone was leading her.

She kept on walking through the darkness until she could feel a faint glow that was ahead. However, before she could reach the place where she felt the glow was, she fell unconscious due to exhaustion.

 **"It has been four hundred years, it's good to see you again Jade Princess."** the mysterious voice muttered as Hisui was fast asleep.

-LINE BREAK-

Being an early riser, Ultear was the first one to awoken from her sleep. She felt something was not right so she looked around the room for what it was. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary until her eyes fell upon Hisui's bed, she noticed that the princess was nowhere to be seen. While Hisui was not a late riser, it wasn't in her routine to wake at the crack of dawn as well. While it could just be a coincidence, Ultear didn't want to put her faith into it since Hisui was not someone who breaks her daily routine. Something has definitely come up and it immediately demands attention.

"Natsu, Happy wake up! Have you seen where Hisui went off to?!" Ultear whispered loudly.

"So loud."

"So early."

"This isn't the time to mope around you two, Hisui's nowhere to be seen. And it's not even sunrise yet. There are hardly any people out in town." Ultear lightly chided the duo.

Natsu and Happy shook off the drowziness in their eyes and took in what the old lady said. She had a point, Hisui had never done something like this since they journeyed together. The green-haired princess rarely wandered alone and even then, it would only be for a short while. But the most puzzling part is that she went out in total darkness since the light lacrima was still sitting on the table. What would she be doing out in town in the dead of the night, not even carrying a light lacrima?

"I'll try to trace her scent." Natsu said, stiffling a yawn while carefully stretching his limbs.

"If Natsu's nose picks it up, she's as good as found." Happy added, confident about his partner's tracking skills.

Natsu whiffed the air for a bit, then he proceeded to smell her bed and blanket. He continued to do so until he reached the door and made his conclusion.

"Hisui left three to four hours ago." Natsu stated and looked at the window to see the sky. The day was breaking but the sun hasn't risen yet. "We should go now, she'd gotten a few hours head start."

Without another word, the three of them prepared their luggage in record time. They even carried Hisui's belongings with them, just in case. As soon as they were done, they hurriedly went out of the inn.

It was still quite dark and there were no townspeople outside town. They were still probably hungover from last night's celebration. Natsu continued to let himself be guided by Hisui's scent. He smelled both the air and the ground to determine her location and the freshness of the trail.

"We better pick it up, Hisui's gotten quite far ahead of us." Natsu said in a serious tone. "Happy, you carry Ultear. We need to catch up as fast as we can. I don't have the slightest idea why she left the inn and never told us." Natsu said in a worried tone.

Happy and Ultear nodded in compliance.

They went off deep into the forest since that's where Hisui's scent took them. They maintained a fast and steady pace for a good thirty minutes before Natsu smelled multiple presences and all of them seemed to be human.

"Who goes there?!" Natsu shouted.

"You've stumbled upon your death, brat." an unknown voice said. The figure was revealed to be a giant, bearded man sporting a long beard. He carried a giant cleaver that could slice a vulcan in half. Behind him were about ten men with the same stature, also carrying dangerous weapons with them.

"You've stumbled upon the lair of the dark guild, Black Tongue. Nobody's ever crossed this path and made it to the other side." the bearded man, who seems to be their guild master boasted. "Hand over your valuables, we may just have a change of heart"

As soon as Natsu heard the man's threatening tone, a dangerous smirk formed upon his lips. He still worried for Hisui but he was always in a mood for a relaxing throw down.

"Stupid name for a pathetic guild. Don't even bother letting us know who you thugs are, I'm pretty sure no one has even heard of your scummy guild." Natsu mocked, effectively agitating the Black Tongue members.

"You will learn your lesson you insolent brat!" one of their members yelled. He charged at Natsu with an axe, but before he could even get closer to the pinkette, his whole body was encased in cold, hard ice.

"My, my, so early in the morning and you're already causing this much trouble." Ultear said from above in her Ice Make stance with Happy carrying her.

"Don't push yourself Ultear, I can handle these clowns just fine on my own." Natsu warned the old time mage.

"Don't worry Natsu, I'm quite alright. And besides it is a must that people of old age get their exercise." Ultear answered.

"So you're mages as well, huh?" their leader interrupted. "Well, it doesn't change the fact that you're outnumbered. And we show no mercy to ones who belittle our guild." the leader glared at Natsu threateningly.

Natsu answered back with an equally piercing glare. "Want to brawl? Then have at me." he challenged, motioning his fingers. "It has been awhile since I had my fists planted on some thug's face."

"Tch, kill them all!" their leader ordered. His men charged at the dragon slayer without hesitation, bringing down their weapons at him. The swords they were carrying were enhanced with elemental magic. "Show them what we do to trespassers!"

"I shouldn't waste my time any longer, **FIRE DRAGON'S WINGBEAT!"** Natsu shouted and swooped over the men in one go. All their weapons melted like butter from Natsu's flames, the group of men were left charred from the devastating blow.

The leader was left stunned from the dragon slayer's power. From the look in his eyes, it was clear that the man thought of fleeing from the monster in front of him. But before he could even move a muscle, Natsu held his shirt in a tight grip.

"Have you seen a girl with green hair walking through here?" Natsu asked, glaring at the dark guildmaster in his clutches. The dark mage trembled at Natsu's glare and was struggling to form his answer.

"I-I s-swear we never saw a-any girl pass through h-here." the man answered in a pleading tone. His attitude towards Natsu took a 180-degree turn as soon as his men were defeated in a single attack. "P-Please let m-me go, I-I'm of no help to you."

"Man, some help you guys are." Natsu said and sighed in disappointment. "Where does this path lead to?" the pinkette asked pointing to trail where they planned to look for Hisui.

"W-were already on the borders of S-Stella and J-Joya, that path leads to the Great Wyvern Valley." the man stuttered since Natsu still had a tight grip on his shirt.

Natsu sniffed the surrounding air for a moment. "Happy, Ultear, let's go. Hisui's scent leads us to whatever is ahead of this trail." Natsu stated and pointed at the trail.

"Okay, Natsu."

"Aye."

"W-wait! the Great Wyvern Valley is the home of very hostile wyverns that attacks trespassers without warning. Many tried to pass through there but none of them were heard of ever again." the man warned as soon as Natsu let him go.

"Hmm, so they behave just like the way your scummy guild does, huh?" Natsu jabbed. He chuckled lightly at his words. "I don't appreciate your concern, and your warning means nothing. We will find our friend no matter what." Natsu said and walked off.

"Oh, I almost forgot." Natsu halted his steps and looked at the dumbfounded man. He gave the man a devious smirk and yelled, **"FIRE DRAGON'S ROAR!"** A giant stream of flames came out of the dragon slayer's jaws and headed to the direction of a shabby-looking building, which he assumed was their guild hot flames reduced the building into ashes within seconds.

"That's what you get for wasting our time." the pinkette said and continued to walk off together with his companions, leaving the man in a mess.

-LINE BREAK-

 **Two Hours Later:**

The trio continued to search for their friend for the past few hours. Natsu noticed Hisui's scent becoming stronger which made them quicken their pace. The three of them had to wonder what someone like Hisui be doing in a middle of nowhere. Things might be a little crazy at the moment but they'd be fools if they doubted a dragon slayer's nose.

After two hours of nonstop trekking, the trio finally reached the Great Wyvern Valley. It was truly a majestic place, a vast expanse of green fields stretched across the plains. Forest wyverns soared through the sky above, ruling over it. Their graceful movements were almost as breath-taking as their bigger cousins, the dragons.

It seemed that the valley was where the wyverns built their nests which made the mothers extremely hostile and protective. Scattered bones of vulcans, lizardmen and some humans were proof that these wyverns were not to be messed around with. Even Natsu was not so confident that he could take on that many wyverns.  
They stood at about twenty feet and their wingspan stretched up to thirty feet in length. They in leafy green scales and their teeth were long and ragged.

The trio were walking on eggshells as they walked through the valley and at the same time, search for their friend. Thankfully, the wyverns have not noticed them yet and they were allowed minimal movement through the caverns within the mountains. The valley's mountains were filled with cave entrances which the trio used to sneak around and remain undetected.

Natsu's supreme sense of smell ultimately led them to a giant undergound tunnel entrance. It was much different from the other tunnels that they went through. Apart from the fact that it had a wider entrance, it radiated a faint glow and that certain glow carried an air of mystique that's impossible to ignore. Considering that Natsu could almost smell the very aroma of Hisui's hair and skin meant that the search for their friend is almost over.

"If the dragon slayer's nose hadn't been so strong, I don't we'll ever find Hisui in these tunnels." Ultear commented as Happy put her down.

"Aye. I was so busy following Natsu that I forgot which way we came from." Happy added.

"Let's hurry guys, we're almost there." Natsu said in a relieved tone.

When they entered the tunnel, their eyes widened in awe and wonder. Natsu, Happy and Ultear reached the tunnel deep enough to find what was the source of that faint glow. They stood in amazement as an unlimited collection of treasures of different kind unfolded before their eyes. From crowns to scepters, from shiny bracelets to golden coins, all things that a royal family would possess was in an unknown tunnel in the middle of nowhere.

There were even weapons and armors of the highest class, hoarded on top of each other. This was the largest collection of jewelry and other priceless items the three of them had ever seen.

Natsu shook his head to clear his thoughts and refocus on what was their top priority, and that was finding Hisui. The pinkette sniffed the air once more to pin point the location of the green-haired princess.

"Ultear, Happy, this way!" Natsu beckoned to his companions.

The exceed and the time mage followed suit and were quite surprised to Natsu having a stern expression on his face. When they looked at the direction Natsu's eyes were on, they were shocked to see Hisui comfortably sleeping on the ground. But the most perplexing sight was the thing wrapped around Hisui's arms, it was a scepter. The staff was colored light green and it had a smooth texture. It held an emerald-green orb that was glowing steadily, it carried the same aura of mystique that Natsu felt as they entered the tunnel.

 _'What the hell happened here?'_ Natsu thought.

 **A/N: I'll end it here for now, I'll try to finish the next chapter as fast as I can. I'll upload it as fast as I possibly can.  
**


End file.
